LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, 

JH^W 

Chap. Copyright No. 

Shelf_>_l_____- - 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



THE 



Government (Lass Book 



A MANTWL OF iNBTRUi HON IN THE PRINCIPLES OF 

CoNSTITUTIox AL GOVERNMENT AND Law. 



Www I. Principles 01 Government. 
By ANDREW W. YOUNG, 

AUTHOR OF "AMi:ui« w STATESMAN,' 1 ' <rnzi\- MANUAL "f QOVBRN- 

KENT \\i> r, \w." i;t< .. in . 



THOROUGHLY ROTTE 

By SALTER S CLARK, 

COUNSELLOR tl LAW. 



Part II. Tin-: (mivehnmext of [llis 

by 
HARRY PRATT JTJDSON, LL.D. 



ois. 



NEW YORK : 

Mayxahd. Merrill, & Co.. Publishers, 

•29. :jl & m East 19th Strekt. 
1900. 



Sv» 



TWo Copies received, 
l»«ry of c.. erM% 

OfHceoftkt 
««Sl«t.r of C.p» f | rtu 

skcono°copy, 



62836 

Copyright, 1880 and 1885, by Clark & Maynard. 
Copyright, 1894 and 1900, 

BY 

MAYNARD, MERRILL, & CO. 



Press of J. J. Little & Co. 
Astor Place, New York 



PREFACE 



The study of the principles of political science is a 
necessary part of a liberal education. In a country 
where the people govern themselves the science of gov- 
ernment is a necessary part of a common-school educa- 
tion. In the United States the people elect their own 
law-makers and rulers, establish their own constitu- 
tions, and determine even the fundamental principle) 
upon which men shall be governed. The danger of 
entrusting such power to the ignorant has not failed of 
illustration in our States and cities. Having universal 
suffrage, the people must learn to govern themselves 
for the sake of their own preservation and welfare. 

Nor is a knowledge of the principles of legal science 
less necessary to every citizen. The laws of man know 
as little of mercy as the laws of nature, in that law 
never admits ignorance as an excuse for wrong. It is 
a proof of the essential justice of our system of juris- 
prudence, that so many citizens pass safely through 
life, totally ignorant of the law, and relying merely 
upon their own sense of what should be. And yet 
every day gives proof that ignorance is always dan- 
gerous. The study of such a work as this will not 
make a youth a lawyer, but it will fix in his mind a 
system of broad principles, which cannot fail to be 
useful practically. 

Though these facts are self-evident, the popular 



4 PREFACE 

study of law and good government has been strangely 
neglected in this and every other country. The aim of 
this book, in supplying a manifest want, is to present, 
in such form as to be used chiefly as a text-book for 
schools, a broad and comprehensive view of the prin- 
ciples of government and law in the United States. 
These principles are substantially the same throughout 
the country, and the young may easily learn the varied 
rights and duties of a citizen in relation to his govern- 
ment and his fellow-men. 

The book is divided into two parts : 

Part I., Principles of Government, is devoted (after 
a few chapters upon general principles), first, to gov- 
ernment by the State, and second, to government by 
the Nation. It is here that the book is believed to 
have its chief advantage over others of its kind. In 
all that we have examined, either one or the other of 
these subjects has been neglected. Some of our Ameri- 
can youth have grown to manhood with so little appre- 
ciation of the political importance of the State, as to 
believe it nothing more than a geographical division ; 
others have placed the State too high, and failed to 
realize the power and dignity of the Nation. In real- 
ity, the National Government, on the one hand, is of 
far greater historic interest and permanent political 
importance, as really governing the future freedom or 
serfdom of the people. On the other hand, the State, 
which says whether the particular individual shall vote, 
what rights of property he shall have, and what shall 
be the punishment for his crimes, enters far more into 
the daily affairs of the single citizen, touches him at 
more points, and is therefore of greater temporary in- 
terest. Both subjects should be studied^ and it is of 



PREFACE 5 

especial importance at this time that their relation to 
each other should be clearly presented to the youth of 
the land, for State rights and National rights must 
forever coexist. 

Part II., The Government of Illinois. This part 
treats of the State and local government of Illinois, 
and gives a careful analysis of its constitution, which 
is printed in lull in the appendix. 



CONTENTS 

PART I — Principles of Government 

DIVISION I 

General Principles 

CHAPTEB PA»1 

I. Mankind fitted for Society, Government, and Law, 11 
II. Rights, Liberty, and Law, classified, . . .14 

III. Different Forms of Government, . . . .19 

division n 

State Governments 
SECTION I— INTRODUCTORY 

THEIR BASIS— THE CONSTITUTION: ELECTIONS: THREE DEPARTMENTS 

IV. Constitutions: Their Nature, Object, and Establish- 

ment, 23 

V. Qualifications of Electors, 26 

VI. Elections, 29 

VII. Division of Powers of Government, . . .32 

section n 

LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 

VIII. Legislature : how constituted, . . . .85 

IX. Meetings and Organization, 38 

X. Manner of Enacting Laws, 41 



CONTENTS 



SECTION HI 

EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 
CHAPTER PAGE 

XI. State Officers 46 

XII. County Offices, 49 

XIII. Town Officers, 56 

XIV. Cities and Villages, 59 

XV. Taxes, . 63 

XVI. Education, 67 

XVII. Public Institutions, 72 

XVIII. Militia, 75 

SECTION IV 

JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 

XIX. Courts, 78 

XX. Legal Proceedings, 82 

DIVISION III 
The National Government 



SECTION I 

ITS ORIGIN AND NATURE 

XXI. Government before the Revolution, 

XXII. The Confederation 

XXIII. The Union under the Constitution, 

XXIV. Constitution of the United States, . 



96 
100 
104 



SECTION II 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 



XXV. House of Representatives, 

XXVI. Senate 

XXVII. General Legislative Regulations, 

XXVIII. Powers of Taxation, 

XXIX. Power to Regulate Commerce, 

XXX. Other Powers relating to Peace, 

XXXI. Powers relating to War, . 

XXXII. Prohibitions on the United States, 

XXXIII. Prohibitions on the States, 



130 
134 
137 
140 
143 
147 
155 
160 
163 



CONTENTS 



SECTION III 

EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 
CHAPTER PAGE 

XXXIV. President and Vice-President: Election, Qualifica- 
tions, etc., 168 

XXXV. Powers and Duties of the President, . . .172 
XXXVI. Auxiliary Executive Departments, .... 176 

SECTION IV 

JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 

XXXVII. National Courts and their Jurisdiction, . . . 180 
XXXVIII. Treason, 185 



SECTION V 

MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 

XXXIX. Relations of States, 

XL. Amendment: Debt: Supremacy: Oath: 

ification, 

XLI. The First Twelve Amendments, 
XLII. The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments. 



rest: Rat- 



187 

190 
193 
199 



PART II. — The Government <>r Illinois. 



CHAPTER l'Ai.K 

I. Historical Sketch, :! 

II. The Land and the People, 25 

III. Political Divisions of the State, . . . .28 

IV. The State Government— The Constitution. . . 4:.} 
V. The State Government— The Legislature, . . 56 

VI. The State Government— The Executive Depart- 
ment, 74 

VII. The Executive— Con tin ucd 84 

VIII. The Judiciary, 114 

IX. Local Government — Counties and Towns. . . 123 

X. Local Government — Municipalities, . . . 137 



10 CONTENTS 

CHAFTEB TAGE 

XI. Public Revenue, ,150 

XII. Public Education, 155 

XIII. Constitutional Restrictions on the Powers of Gov- 

ernment, . 1G6 

XIV. Illinois and the United States, . . . .194 



PRINCIPLES 



OF 



GrOYERNMENT AND LAW 

PART I 
Principles of Government 

division i 

General Principles 
CHAPTER I 

MANKIND FITTED FOR SOCIETY, GOVERNMENT, AND LAW 

1. Mankind Social — Men are by nature fitted for 
society. By this we mean that they are naturally 
disposed to associate with each other. They could not 
be happy without such association. Hence we conclude 
that the Creator has designed men for society. 

2. Dependent on Each Other — Man is so formed 
that he is dependent upon his fellow-men. He has 
not the natural strength of some animals. We can 
hardly imagine how a man could defend himself 
against the beasts, or even procure the necessaries of 
life, without assistance from his fellow-beings. But 
by means of speech men learn from each other how to 



12 PRINCIPLES OF GOVERNMENT 

supply their wants and improve their social condi- 
tion. 

3. Each Must Support Himself — But, although 
men need the assistance of each other, society is 
so formed that each must take care of himself. If 
every man were fed and clothed from a common 
store provided by the labor of all, many, depending 
upon the labor of others, would be less industrious 
than they now are. By the present arrangement, 
which obliges every man to provide for his own 
wants, more is produced, a greater number are cared 
for, and the general welfare is better promoted than 
if each labored for the benefit of all. 

4. Right of Property — From this arrangement 
comes the right of property. If each man's earnings 
should go into a common stock for the use of all, 
there would be nothing that any one could call his 
own. But if each is to provide for himself, he must 
have a right to use and enjoy the fruits of his own 
labor. 

5. Common to All — But all men in society have the 
same rights. Therefore we cannot rightfully supply 
our own wants or gratify our own desires any further 
than is consistent with the rights of others. But man 
is by nature selfish, and many would infringe the rights 
of others, for their own selfish ends, unless restrained. 
Hence we see the necessity of some fixed rules that 
each one may know what he may do, and what he must 
not do. 

6. Law — These rules for regulating the social actions 
of men are called laws. Zaw, in a general sense, is a 
rule of action, and is applied to all kinds of action ; as, 
the law of gravitation, the laws of chemistry, etc. But 



GENERAL PRINCIPLES 13 

in a limited sense, it denotes the rules of human action 
prescribing what men are to do, and forbidding what 
they are not to do. 

7. Man a Moral Being — We have seen that man is 
fitted for law, because he is designed for society, and 
law is necessary to govern society. By nature, also, 
he is fitted for government and law, because he is a 
moral being. The word moral has various significa- 
tions. When we say, a moral man, we mean a virtuous 
or upright man. But in a wider sense it relates to the 
social actions of men, both right and wrong, as when 
we say, his morals are good, or his morals are bad. 
When it is said that man is a moral being, it is meant 
that he has a sense of right and wrong, or at least the 
power of acquiring it. He knows what is right and 
what is wrong, and he knows that lie ought to do the 
right and avoid the wrong. Therefore he is fitted to 
understand why laws are right. 

8. Government Necessary — Thus we have seen that 
men are social, reasonable, and moral beings, and that 
for each one of these reasons they are litted for society 
and law. But law cannot exist without government. 
Law is a rule of action laid down by the supreme power, 
and if there is no supreme power there can be no law. 
Hence we see the necessity for government It is not 
probable that people knowingly acted on these prin- 
ciples in first forming governments; that is, deliber- 
ately met together and agreed to have a certain 
government and certain laws. But it is these princi- 
ples that maintain law and government now. 



14 PRINCIPLES OF GOVERNMENT 

CHAPTEK II 

EIGHTS, LIBERTY, AND LAW, CLASSIFIED 

1. Rights — A right is a just claim. We have a right 
to what we have acquired by honest labor, or other 
lawful means, because we are justly entitled to freely 
use and enjoy it. We have a right to our lives, and 
to our freedom ; that is, to do whatever we think 
necessary for our own safety and happiness, provided 
we do not trespass upon the rights of others, because it 
would be unjust to deprive us of our lives or freedom. 

2. How Forfeited — But society has its rights also, 
and if we infringe them it is just we should be punished 
by losing some of our own. We may forfeit them by 
some offence or crime. If, for example, a man is fined 
for breaking a law, he loses his right to the money he 
is obliged to pay. By stealing, he forfeits his liberty, 
and may be justly imprisoned. By committing murder, 
he forfeits his right to life, and may be hanged. 

3. Political Rights — Rights are political or civil. 
Political rights are those which each citizen has with 
reference to sharing in the government. The word 
political, in a general sense, relates to the government. 
The whole body of the people united under one gov- 
ernment is called the political body, or body politic. 
The right of the people to choose and establish for 
themselves a form of government, or constitution, and 
the right to elect persons to make and execute the laws, 
are political rights. The right of voting at elections is 
therefore a political right. Political rights are derived 
from the constitution. Under absolute monarchies, 



GENERAL PRINCIPLES 15 

therefore, where there is no constitution, the people 
have no political rights; under democracies they have 
more than under any other form of government. 

4. Civil Rights are all those which are not political. 
They are the rights which govern our ordinary, every- 
day actions; such as, the right to go where we pi 

to do whatever we wish with our own property, or to 
control our children. They arc also called natut-al 
rights, because given to us by nature, or by birth ; and 
sometimes inalienable rights, because they cannot justly 
be taken 'away from us. They are called civil because 
they relate to the ordinary duties of a citizen. 

5. Absolute Civil Bights — Civil rights are either 
absolute or relative. The absolute civil rights are such 
as we have as individuals, as members of society, in 
our relations to all the other members of society. 
They are divided into three classes: the right of per- 
sonal security, which is the right to be secure from 
injury to life, body, health, or reputation ; the right of 
personal liberty, which is the right to go wherever we 
please; and the right of private property, or the right 
to acquire property and enjoy it without disturbance. 
These are often oaXhed personal rights, or the rights of 
persons. The term rights of person includes only the 
first two ; viz., the rights of personal security and p r- 
sonal liberty. Religious rights, which consist in the 
right to worship God in whatever way each one thinks 
best, and to make known and maintain his religious 
beliefs, are absolute rights. 

6. Relative Civil Rights are such as Ave have in our 
relations to particular persons or classes. They are 
either public or private. The public relative civil 
rights are those we have in our relations to the gov- 



16 PRINCIPLES OF GOVERNMENT 

eminent (except the right to share in it) ; as, the right 
to be protected by it, and the right the government 
and its officers have to our obedience. The private 
relative civil rights are such as are connected with the 
four relations of husband and wife, parent and child, 
guardian and ward, and employer and employed ; as, 
the right of the parent to be obeyed by the child, or 
the right of the wife to be supported by her husband. 

7. Liberty is the being free to exercise and enjoy 
our rights, and is called natural, political, civil, or 
religious, according to the particular class of rights 
referred to. Thus the exercise of rights guaranteed 
by the constitution or political law is called political 
liberty. The free enjoyment of rights secured by the 
civil or municipal laws is called civil liberty. And free- 
dom of religious opinion and worship is called religious 
liberty. Freedom of speech and freedom of the press 
mean the liberty to speak and print whatever we 
choose, provided we do not abuse the right. 

8. Law — It is easy to see that it makes little dif- 
ference how many rights a man has, unless there is 
some power to insure him the liberty to enjoy them. 
The object of law is to secure to all men the various 
kinds of rights we have described. It has different 
names, corresponding to the kinds of rights which it 
protects; as, the political law, which secures our polit- 
ical rights, and the civil or municipal law, which 
secures our civil rights. The word 7nunicipal was 
used by the Komans to designate that which related 
to a municipium ; i.e., a free town, or city. And so, 
often, we use the term municipal law as denoting the 
law that relates to cities or towns, but here it is used 
in a broader sense, and includes the body of laws 



GENERAL PRINCIPLES 17 

which prescribe what we may, or must not, do, and is 
equivalent to civil law* The constitution is the polit- 
ical law ; the body of laws governing the ordinary 
actions of men is the civil or municipal law ; and the 
rules which regulate the intercourse of nations consti- 
tute international law. 

9. The Moral Law is that which prescribes man's 
duties not only to his fellow-men, but also to God. It 
is briefly expressed in the decalogue, or ten command- 
ments, and is still more briefly summed up in the two 
great commandments, to love God with all our heart, 
and to love our neighbor as ourselves. It is sometimes 
called the divine law, because God is its author; and 
the revealed law, or law of revelation, because it is 
revealed to man in the Scriptures. As a rule of eon- 
duct it is also the same as the law of nature, the only 
difference between them being in their origin; the 
former, the revealed law, coming directly from God, 
and the latter, the law of nature, coming from nature — 
that is, our own consciousness in its perfect state. 

10. Broader than Civil Law — Although the moral 
law is a perfect rule of action, to which all human laws 
ought to conform, yet the civil law does not, and can- 
not, embrace all that the moral law does. The moral 
law is directed not only to the outward acts, but also 
to the thoughts and intents of the heart. It requires 
us to love our Creator supremely, ana our neighbor as 
ourselves ; in other words, to do to others as we would 
that they should do to us. But as the omniscient God 
only knows when men fail in these duties, no human 

* Care must be taken to distinguish the term, as used in this con- 
nection, from the Civil Law, a name for the old Roman law. 
2 



18 



PRINCIPLES OF GOVERNMENT 



authority could enforce such a law. Human laws, 
therefore, have respect chiefly to the outward acts of 
men, and are designed to regulate their intercourse 
with each other. 



Eights of Citizens 
I. POLITICAL; these are 

1. Eight of all to establish a government, and 

2. Eight of each to share in it, by voting. 

II. CIVIL ; these are 

1. Absolute ; they are the right of 

/ 1. Personal Security, 
I 2. Personal Liberty, and 
( 3. Private Property. 

2. Relative? these are 
1. Public ; they are 

1. Eight of people to protec- 
tion of government, and 

2. Eight of government to 
obedience of people. 

k 2. Private ; arising from relations of 

1. Husband and wife, 

2. Parent and child, 

3. Guardian and ward, and 

4. Employer and employed, 



GENERAL PRINCIPLES 19 

CHAPTER III 

DIFFERENT FORMS OF GOVERNMENT 

1. Patriarchal Government — Governments have 

existed in a great variety of forms. Most existing 
governments are, more or less, mixtures of the differ- 
ent kinds. The earliest governments of which we 
have any knowledge are the patriarchal. Patriarch, 
from the Greek pater, father, and arckos, chief, or head, 
means the father and ruler of a family. This kind of 
government prevailed in the early ages of the world, 
and is the form adapted to a state of society where the 
people dwell together in families or tribes, and are not 
yet formed into states or nations. A bra ha in was a 
patriarchal ruler. 

2. Theocracy — After their departure from Egypt, 
the government of the Hebrews was a tin ocracy. This 
word is from theos, God, and kratos, power, and sig- 
nifies a government by those who are also the relig- 
ious rulers, or, as it is claimed, by the immediate direc- 
tion of God. The laws by which they were governed 
they believed were given to them on Mount Sinai by 
God himself, their leader and king. 

3. Most Common Forms — But the most common 
forms of government are monarchy, aristocracy, and 
democracy. Many claim that all kinds of government 
may be reduced to one of these three. For example, 
the patriarchal government is but a kind of monarchy. 
The power of government is, in a general sense, called 
the supreme power, or sovereignty. 

4. Monarchy — The form of government in which 



20 PRINCIPLES OF GOVERNMENT 

the supreme power is in the hands of one person is 
called a monarchy. The word monarch is from two 
Greek words, monos, sole or only, and archos, a chief ; 
and is a general name for a single ruler, whether he 
be called king, emperor, or prince. A government in 
which all power resides in or proceeds from one person 
is an absolute monarchy. If the power of the monarch 
is restrained by laws or by some other power, it is 
called a limited monarchy. The English Government 
is a limited monarchy. A monarchy is called hered- 
itary in which the crown passes from father to son, or 
from the monarch to his successor, by inheritance. 
On the death of a sovereign, the eldest son is usually 
heir to the crown. A monarchy is elective where, on 
the death of the ruler, his successor is appointed by an 
election. Only a few such monarchies have existed. 

5. Despotism — An absolute monarchy is sometimes 
called despotism. The words despot and tyrant at first 
meant simply a single ruler. They are now applied, 
for the most part, to rulers who exercise authority 
over their subjects with severity. In an absolute des- 
potism, the monarch has entire control over his sub- 
jects. They have no law but the will of the ruler, who 
has at command a large force of armed men to keep 
his people in subjection. The governments of Kussia 
and Turkey are more despotic than any others in 
Europe. 

6. Aristocracy is the form of government in which 
the power is exercised by a privileged order of men, 
distinguished for their rank and wealth. The word 
aristocracy is from the Greek word aristos, best, and 
kratofi, power, or krateo, to govern ; and meant, orig- 
inally, government by the best men. It is also used 



GENERAL PRINCIPLES 21 

for the nobility of a country under a monarchical gov- 
ernment. Nobles are persons of rank above the com- 
mon people, and bear some title of honor. The titles 
of the English nobility are duke, marquis, earl, vis- 
count, and baron. These titles are hereditary, being 
derived from birth. In some eases they are conferred 
upon persons by the king. 

7. Democracy is government by the people; the 
word democracy being from the Greek demos, the 
people, and krctieo, to govern. In a government purely 
democratic, the great body of freemen meet in one 
assembly to make and execute the laws. There were 
some such governments in ancient Greece; but they 
necessarily comprised small territories, scarcely more 
than a single town. The freemen of a state could not 
all meet in a single assembly. 

H. A Republic is that kind of democracy in which 
the power to enact and execute the laws is exercised 
by representatives, who are persons elected by the 
people to act for them. The people not only enact the 
laws and execute them through the representatives 
whom they elect, but also adopt their own constitution 
or form of government, and thus all power comes from 
the people, the government being properly called a 
representative democracy. A republic is sometimes also 
called a commonwealth, because its object is the com- 
mon happiness of all. 

9. In this Country the people are everywhere under 
two governments, the State and the National Govern- 
ment. The United States is a republic, and so, also, 
is each State. Each State has given up to the Nation 
those powers and duties which naturally belong to a 
nation in its relations with foreign powers, as the 



22 PRINCIPLES OF GOVERNMENT 

right to make war or treaties, and also has given up 
the power to make laws on subjects in which all the 
people in the country are interested together, as com- 
merce, the coining of money, arid patents. But the 
State retains all the powers it has not given up, and 
both State and National Governments are independent 
of each other, each in its own sphere. The Territories, 
until they become States, are under the United States 
Government. It grants them, to a certain extent, 
through Congress, self-government, on the plan of the 
State governments, but it can take it away at any 
time. 

Kinds of Goveenment 

I. Monarchy ; this may be, 

1. As to Power, 

j 1. Absolute, or 
( 2. Limited. 

2. As to Title, 
( 1. Hereditary, or 
t 2. Elective. 

II. Aristocracy? 

III. Democracy ; this may be, 

j 1. Pure Democracy, or 
( 2. Republic. 



DIVISION II 
State Governments 

SECTION L— INTRODUCTORY 

Their Basis, the Constitution; Elections; Three Depart- 
ments 

CHAPTER IV 

constitutions: their nature, object, and estab- 
lishment 

1. Republic the Best Government — Of all the 

different forms of government which have existed, a 
republican government, on the plan of that which has 
been established in this country, is believed to be best 
adapted to secure the liberties of a people, and to pro- 
mote the general welfare. Under the reign of a wise 
and virtuous ruler, the rights of person and property 
may be fully enjoyed, and the people may be in a good 
degree prosperous. But the requisite virtue and wis- 
dom combined have seldom been found in any one 
man {i.e., a monarchy), or a body of men (i.e., an 
aristocracy). And, as Ave in this country believe, ex- 
perience has proved that the objects of civil govern- 
ment may be best secured by a written constitution 
founded upon the will or consent of the people. Each 
State in the Union has such a constitution, and the 
Nation itself has one. 



24 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

2. Constitution — The word constitute is from the 
Latin, and signifies to set, to fix, to establish. Consti- 
tution, when used in a political sense, means the estab- 
lished form of government of a state. In a free 
government, like ours, it is properly called the political 
law, being established by the people as a body politic. 
(Page 16, § 8.) It is also called the fundamental law, 
because it is the foundation of all other laws of the 
state, and of all the powers of the state, legislative, 
executive, and judicial. 

3. Nature — A constitution is in the nature of an 
agreement between a whole community, or body politic, 
and each of its members. This agreement or contract 
implies that each one binds himself to the whole, and 
the whole binds itself to each one, that all shall be 
governed by certain laws and regulations for the com- 
mon good. 

4. Convention — In forming a constitution, the peo- 
ple must act collectively. But their number is too 
large to meet in a single assembly. Therefore they 
choose a small number to act for them. One or more 
are chosen in each county, or smaller district, and are 
called delegates. A delegate is a person appointed by 
another with power to transact business as his repre- 
sentative. The assembly composed of the delegates so 
elected is called a convention, a name given to most 
public meetings other than legislative assemblies. The 
convention draws up in proper form a paper contain- 
ing the fundamental laws and general form of govern- 
ment, under which it thinks the people wish to be 
governed. 

5. Adoption by People — But what has thus been 
prepared by the convention is not yet a constitution. 



INTRODUCTORY 25 

It is only a draft of one, and cannot, in general, be 
come a constitution without the consent of the people 
to be given at an election. If a majority of the per- 
sons voting at such election vote in favor of the 
proposed constitution, it is adopted, and becomes the 
constitution of the State. 

(>. Amendment — A constitution usually provides for 
its own amendment. Amendments are, generally, pro- 
posed and passed by the legislature, sometimes on two 
successive years, and then submitted to the people. 

7. Value — One of the most valuable rights of the 
people under a free government is the right to have a 
constitution of their own choice. Indeed, it is in this 
right that their freedom principally consists. It is 
by the constitution that their rights are secured. The 
legislature can pass no laws that the constitution for- 
bids, and if they should enact unjust and oppressive 
laws, the people, having by their constitution reserved 
the right to displace them, may do so by electing 
others in their stead.* 

8. Other Governments — In an absolute monarchy 
the people have neither the right to establish their 
own form of government, nor the right to elect their 
law-makers. The will of the monarch is the only law. 
In a limited monarchy they have some political rights. 
In Great Britain the people elect representatives to the 
House of Commons, which is the most important part 

* It would seem to follow from this thai the people of any State, 
haying the right to select their own form of government, might, if 
they wished, choose any form ; for example, a monarchy. But it 
must be remembered that this country is a nation, and not a collec- 
tion of States, and that the United States Constitution has guaran- 
teed to every State in the Union a republican government, or, in 
other words, forbidden any other form. 



26 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

of the legislature ; but they did not originally establish 
the form of government. The English have no written 
constitution. What is called the English constitution 
consists of the body of fundamental laws, principles, 
and customs which in the course of centuries have 
become securely fixed. But Parliament, the English 
law-making bodv has the power to make any law it 
sees fit. 

CHAPTER Y. 

QUALIFICATIONS OF ELECTORS. 

1. Electors — One of the first provisions usually 
inserted in the constitution of a free state is that 
which declares who shall be allowed to take a part in 
the government ; that is, to whom the political power 
shall be intrusted. The political power of the people 
consists chiefly in the right to vote, called the right 
of suffrage. The constitution regulates this, and does 
not give it to every one in the state, but only to such 
as are qualified to exercise it understand ingly. Those 
who have the right of suffrage are called electors* 
When, therefore, we speak of the people politically, we 
mean those only who are qualified electors. 

2. Age — An elector must be twenty-one years of 
age. Before that age young men have not the neces- 
sary knowledge and judgment to act with discretion. 
Some are competent at an earlier age ; but a constitu- 
tion can make no distinction between citizens. It has, 
therefore, in accordance with the general opinion, fixed 
the time at the age of twenty-one when men shall be 

*Thesearenol Presidential Electors. The word is used here in a 
genera] sense. For Presidential Electors, sec page 1G9. 



INTRODUCTORY 27 

deemed capable of exercising the rights and perform- 
ing the duties of freemen. 

3. Sox — It is a genera] rale that no woman can vote, 
although the question has been settled in some States 
in favor of woman suffrage. 

4. Residence — That a man may vote understand- 
ingly, he must have resided Long enough In the State 
to have become acquainted with its government and 
laws, and to have learned the character and qualifica- 
tions of the persons for whom he VOt< State con- 
stitutions therefore require that electors shall have 
resided in the State for a specified period of time, vary- 
ing, however, in the different States from three months 
to two years. In most of the States they must also 
have resided for some months in the county or district, 
and be residents of the town in which they oiler to vote. 

5. Aliens — Persons born in foreign countries are 
alien*) and in most States have no right to vote. 
They are presumed to have too little knowledge of our 
government, and to feel too little interest in public 
affairs, on their first coming hither, to be duly quali- 
fied for the exercise of political power. Laws, however, 
have been enacted for naturalizing aliens after they shall 
have resided here long enough to become acquainted 
with and attached to our government. By naturaliza- 
tion they become citizens, entitled to all the privileges 
of native or natural-born citizens except election to the 
office of President or Vice-President. (See page 148.) 

6. Criminals — It is provided also in State constitu- 
tions that electors convicted of infamous crimes are 
disfranchised. Franchise is a right or privilege. The 
right of voting is called the elective franchise ; and 
an elector when deprived of this privilege is dls- 



28 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

franchised. Men guilty of high crimes are deemed 
unfit to be intrusted with so important a duty as that 
of electing the persons who are to make and execute 
the laws of the State. It is provided, however, that if 
such persons are pardoned before the expiration of the 
term for which they were sentenced to be imprisoned, 
their forfeited rights are restored. 

7. Idiots and lunatics have no right to vote, for the 
reason that they cannot use it understandingly. 

8. Property — In general it is not now necessary for 
an elector to own property. By the earliest constitu- 
tions of many of the old States, electors were required 
to own property, or to have paid rents or taxes, to a 
certain amount. In the constitutions of the newer 
States, and the amended constitutions of the old States, 
property has not been made a qualification of an elector. 
In many States, however, paupers have no vote. 

9. Color — There is now no distinction of color in 
the right to vote, and the negro has the same privilege 
as the white man in all the States. Up to the adoption 
of the fifteenth amendment to the Constitution of the 
United States, in 1870, colored people, whether slave 
or free, could not vote in the Southern States, and in 
only three or four of the Northern States. 

Recent laws have greatly restricted the immigration 
of the Chinese. As a rule, they have no political rights 
in this country. 

Thus it will be seen that while all the people in a 
State have civil rights, less than half have political 
rights. 



INTRODUCTORY 29 

CHAPTER VI 

ELECTIONS 

1. When Held— For the convenient exercise of 

political power, ;is well as for the purpoa \ em- 

inent generally, the territory of a State is divided into 

districts of small extent. A State is divided into 
counties, and these are divided into towns or town- 
ships. The people of every county and every town 
have power to manage their local concerns. The 
electors of the State meet every year in their respective 
towns for the election of officers. Governors in most 
of the States are elected every two or four years, but 
many oilicers elected by the people are chosen every 
year. All the electors of the State may vote lor State 
officers, but only residents of the respective towns or 
counties can vote for the town and county oilicers. 
In most States the general State election is held in 
October or November. 

2. Inspectors of Election — Elections are conducted 
by persons designated by law, or chosen by the electors 
of the town, for that purpose. It is their duty to pre- 
serve order, and to see that the business is properly 
done. They are usually called judges <>f ih<-ti<>/< or in- 
spectors of election. Persons also (usually two) serve 
as clerks. Each clerk keeps a list of the names of the 
persons voting, which is called a poll-list. ]*<>11, which 
is said to be a Saxon word, signifies Jua<], and has come 
to mean person. By a further change it has been made 
to signify an election or the place where the voting is 
done. 



30 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

3. Voting — The polls, i.e., the voting places, are gen- 
erally open one day, from sunrise to sunset. The in- 
spectors receive from each voter a ballot, which is a 
piece of paper containing the names of the persons 
voted for, and the title of the office to which each of 
them is to be elected. The voting in most of the 
States is by ballot, but in one or two it is viva voce ; 
that is, by the elector speaking the name of the person 
for whom he votes. 

4. Challenging — If no objection is made to an 
elector's voting, the ballot is put into the box and the 
clerks enter his name on the poll-list. If the inspec- 
tors suspect that a person offering to vote is not a 
qualified elector, they may question him upon his oath 
in respect to his age, the term of his residence in the 
State and county, and citizenship. Any bystander also 
may question his right to vote. This is called challeng- 
ing. A person thus challenged is not allowed to vote 
until the challenge is withdrawn, or his qualifications 
are either proved by the testimony of other persons or 
sworn to by himself. 

5. Registration — In a few States the voters are 
registered, especially in the large cities. A list is made 
some days before the election, of the names of all who 
present themselves and, upon examination, are shown 
to be qualified electors ; and those only whose names 
have been registered are allowed to vote on election- 
day. Thus many interruptions to voting by the exami- 
nation of voters at the polls, and much illegal voting, 
are prevented. 

6. Canvassing — After the polls are closed, the box 
is opened and the ballots are counted. This is called 
canvassing the votes. If the number of ballots agrees 



INTRODUCTORY 31 

with the number of names on the poll-lists, it is pre- 
sumed no mistake lias been made either in voting <>r 
in keeping the lists. If there are more ballots than 

names, in some States the election will be void, in 
others a number of ballots equivalent to the excess will 
be drawn out and destroyed. If the election is one for 
the choosing of town officers, it is there determined 
who are elected, and their election is publicly declared. 
The election of county and State officers cannot be 
determined by the town canvassers. A statement of 
the votes given in each town for the persons voted for 
is sent to the county canvassers, who, from the returns 
of votes from all the towns, determine and declare 
the election of the officers chosen for the county. To 
determine the election of State officers, and of sucb 
others as are elected for districts comprising more than 
one county, a statement of the votes given for the 
several candidates is sent by the several boards of 
county canvassers to the State canvassers, who, from 
the returns of votes from the several counties, deter- 
mine the election of the State officers. 

7. Number Necessary — In most of the States per- 
sons are elected by a plurality of votes. An election 
by plurality is when the person elected has received a 
higher number of votes than any other, though such 
number be less than half of all the votes given. Sup- 
pose, for example, three candidates receive 1,000 votes : 
one receives 450; another, 300; the third, 250 votes. 
The first, having the highest number, though not a 
majority, is elected. In most of the States of New 
England a majority — that is, more than one half of all 
the votes given — is necessary to the election of many 
of the higher officers. The least number of votes out 



32 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

of 1,000, by which a person can be elected by this rule, 
is 501. 

8. Objections — Either of these modes is open to 
objection. When a simple plurality effects an election, 
1,000 votes may be so divided upon three candidates as 
to elect one by 334 votes ; or of four candidates, one 
may be elected by 251 votes, and against the wishes of 
nearly three fourths of the electors. The objection to 
the other mode is that if no person receives a majority 
of all the votes, another election must be held. Nu- 
merous trials have, in some instances, been necessary 
to effect a choice ; and the people of a district have 
remained for a time without a representative in the 
State or national legislature. 



CHAPTER VII 

DIVISION OF POWEKS OF GOVERNMENT 

1. Three Departments — Government is divided into 
three distinct divisions, or, in other words, sovereign 
power may be exercised in three directions : in making 
laws, in enforcing them, and in judging whether par- 
ticular cases come under certain laws. In all free 
countries these powers are exercised by three separate 
departments, called the legislative, executive, and judi- 
cial departments. In a monarchy, though they may 
exist, the other two are more or less under the control 
of the executive department, the monarch. In this 
country the three departments exist in every State and 
arc kept distinct from each other. 

2. Legislative — The legislative department is that 
by which the laws of the State are made, and is called 



INTRODVCTORY 33 

the legislature. Its object is to make such laws as are 
not embodied in the constitution. The constitution 
establishes not only the form and the departments of 
government, but also certain broad principles of law, 
which the legislature cannot violate; but it leaves to 
the legislature the making of the particular laws to 
carry out those principles in detail, and there are many 
subjects on which the legislature is unrestrained. It 
would be impossible for a State to adopt, as a constitu- 
tion, a system of laws that would not need change and 
addition. 

.'*. Its Divisions — The legislature is composed of two 
bodies, or houses, as they arc called, the members of 
each being elected by the people. Both must agree to 
a measure before it becomes a law. In limited mon- 
archies where one branch of the legislature is elective, 
the other is an aristocratic body, composed of men of 
wealth and dignity, as the British House of Lords. 

4. Executive — The executive department is intrusted 
with the power of executing, or carrying into effect, 
the laws of the State. Its principal officer is a gov- 
ernor, who is elected by the people, lie is assisted by 
a number of other officers, some of whom are elected 
by the people; others are appointed in such manner as 
the constitution or laws prescribe. 

5. Judicial — The judicial department is that by 
which justice is administered to the citizens. Its duty 
is to decide the meaning of laws, and whether particu- 
lar cases fall within them. It embraces the several 
courts of the State. All judges and justices of the 
peace are judicial officers. 

6. Separation — Experience has shown the propriety 
of dividing the civil power into these three depart- 

3 



34 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

ments, and of confining the officers of each department 
to the powers and duties belonging to the same. 
Those who make the laws should not exercise the 
power of executing them ; nor should they who either 
make or execute the laws sit in judgment over those 
who are brought before them for trial. It would give 
too much power to one, and would endanger the lib- 
erty of the people. Yet in many instances this prin- 
ciple is violated to a degree. In many States the gov- 
ernor must approve a measure before it can become a 
law, and thus he has legislative power. In some he 
appoints the judges, and so has judicial power. 



Departments of Government 

I. LEGISLATIVE— Law-Making : consists of 

1. Senate, 

2. House of representatives, and 

3. Governor (in many States). 

II. EXECUTIVE— Law-Executing : represented 

by 

{ 1. Governor, and 

| 2. All other executive officers. 

III. JUDICIAL — Law-Interpreting and Ap. 

PLYING : Consists of 

All the judges. 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 35 



SECTION II— LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 

CHAPTER VIII 
legislature: how constituted 

1. Two Houses— The Legislature of every State in 
the Union is composed of two houses— a senate and 
a house of representatives, sometimes called the upper 

and lower house* In most of the States the two houses 
together are called the general assembly, 

a. Senate 

2. Character — The senate, as well as the other 
house, is a representative body, its members being 
elected by the people to represent them. It is a much 
smaller body than the lower house, and consists, gen- 
erally, of from twenty-live to fifty members in the 
different States. It was designed to be, and is, a more 

* Though both are representative bodies, only the lower house is 
called the " House of Representatives." The reason for this may be: 
Under the governments of the Colonics, while yet subject to Great 
Britain, there was but one representative assembly. The other 
branch of the legislature was called a council, consisting of a small 
number of men who were appointed by the King. After the Colo- 
nies became free and independent States, the senate was substituted 
for the old council, and the other house kept its old name. 

The lower house in the States of New York, Wisconsin. Nevada, 
and California, is called the assembly; in Maryland, Virginia. .and 
West Virginia, the house of delegates; in North Carolina, the house 
of commons ; and in New Jersey, the general assembly. 



36 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

select body, composed of men chosen with reference to 
their superior ability or their greater experience in 
public affairs. 

3. Terms — Senators are chosen for terms of four 
years in about half the States ; in the rest for terms 
of one, two, or three years. In most of the States in 
which senators are elected for longer terms than one 
year, they are not all elected at the same time. They 
are divided into classes, and those of one class go out 
of office one year, and those of another class another 
year ; so that only a part of the senators are elected 
every year, or every two, or three, or four years. 

4. Apportionment — This means the division of the 
State into portions ; from each portion its inhabitants 
elect one senator. Senators are differently apportioned 
in different States. In some States they are appor- 
tioned among the several counties, so that the number 
to be elected in each county shall be in proportion to 
the number of its inhabitants. In others they are 
elected by districts, equal in number to the number of 
senators to be chosen in the State, and a senator is 
elected in each district. The districts are to contain, 
as nearly as may be, an equal number of inhabitants, 
and sometimes they comprise several counties. 

b. House of Representatives 

5. Character — This house also is elective, and is a 
larger body than the senate. It consists, generally, of 
from one hundred to two hundred members in the 
different States. 

6. Terms— In most of the States members are 
elected for two years' terms ; in the others, chiefly the 
Eastern States, annually. 



LEG IS LA TI VE I) EPA R TMENT 37 

7. Apportionment — Since tlie number of represen- 
tatives is much larger than that of senators, the dis- 
tricts from which they are elected will, in the same 
State, be much smaller. Representatives are appor- 
tioned among the counties in proportion to the popu- 
lation in each. In some States they are elected in 
districts of equal population, counties being sometimes 
divided in the formation of districts. In the New 
England States representatives are apportioned among 
the towns. 

c. Provisions affecting hoth 

8. Census — The different modes of apportioning 
members of the legislature have in view the same 
object— equal representation ; that is, giving a mem- 
ber to the same number of inhabitants throughout the 
State. But in some counties the population increases 
more rapidly than in others. The representation then 
becomes unequal, being no longer in proportion to 
population. In order to keep the representation 
throughout the State as nearly equal as possible, the 
constitution requires that, at stated times, the people of 
the State shall be numbered, and a new apportionment 
of senators and representatives be made among the 
several counties according to the number of inhabitants 
in each county ; or if the State is one in which mem- 
bers of the legislature are chosen in districts, a new 
division of the State is made into districts. This 
enumeration or numbering of the people is called the 
census, and is taken in some States every ten years, in 
others oftener. But many States depend on the census 
which the United States takes every ten years. 

9. Qualifications — The constitution also prescribes 



38 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

the qualifications of senators and representatives. If, 
as qualifications for an elector, full age, citizenship, 
and a considerable term of residence in the State and 
county are properly required, as we have seen (page 
26), they must be at least equally necessary for those 
who make the laws. In no State, therefore, are any 
but qualified electors eligible to the office of senator or 
representative. In some States greater age and longer 
residence are required ; and in some the age and term 
of residence have been still further increased in the 
case of senators. The property qualification formerly 
necessary for members of the legislature, as well as for 
voters, has been almost entirely abolished. 

10. Vacancy — If a member of the legislature dies 
or resigns his office before the expiration of the term 
for which he was chosen, the vacancy is filled by the 
election of another person at the next general election, 
or at a special election called for that purpose, or in 
such other manner as the constitution may provide. 
But a person chosen to fill a vacancy holds the office 
only for the remainder of the term of him whose place 
he was chosen to supply. 

1 1. Salary — Each member has a salary, fixed by law. 

CHAPTER IX 

MEETINGS AND ORGANIZATION 

1. How Often — The legislature meets as often as 
the constitution requires : in about half of the States 
annually, in the others biennially, or once in two 
years. A legislative session includes the daily meet- 
ings of a legislature from the time of its first assem- 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 39 

bling to the day of final adjournment. Thus we say 
the session commenced in January and ended in 
March. The word session has reference; also to a 
single sitting, from the hour at which the members 
assemble on any day to the time of adjournment on 
the same day. Thus we say the legislature holds a 
daily session of four hours; or, it holds two sessions 
a day, as the case may be. 

2. Place — Meetings of the legislature are held at a 
certain place permanently fixed by law of the State, 
at which the principal State officers keep their offices. 
Hence it is called the seat of government^ or, perhaps 
more frequently, the capital of the State. Capital is 
from the Latin caput, the head, and has come to mean 
chief, or the highest, In this country the word capi- 
tal, applied to a city, now generally indicates the seat 
of government. 

3. Organization — When the two houses have assem- 
bled in their respective chambers, and the oath of office 
has been administered, each house proceeds to organic . 
This consists in appointing proper officers, and in deter- 
mining the right of members to their seats. Each house 
is the sole judge of who has been elected to it. The 
first officer elected is the presiding officer, or chairman, 
who is usually called speaker. The lieutenant-gover- 
nor, in States in which there is one, presides in the sen- 
ate, and is called presicU at of the senate. In the absence 
of the presiding officer, a temporary speaker or presi- 
dent is chosen, who is called speaker, or president, pro 
tempore, commonly abbreviated pro tern., which is a 
Latin phrase, meaning/^/ 1 the time. 

4. Presiding Officer's Duty — The duty of the per- 
son presiding is to keep order and to see that the busi- 



4:0 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

ness of the house is conducted according to certain 
established rules. When a vote is to be taken he puts 
the question, and when taken he declares the question 
to be carried or lost. This part of the speaker's busi- 
ness is similar to that of the chairman of an ordinary 
public meeting. 

5. Minor Officers — The other officers chosen by each 
house are : a cleric, to keep a record or journal of its 
proceedings, to take charge of papers, etc. ; a sergeant- 
at-arms, to arrest members and other persons guilty of 
disorderly conduct, to compel the attendance of absent 
members, and to do other business of a like nature ; 
also one or more door-keepers. The officers mentioned 
in this section are not chosen from the members of the 
house. 

6. Quorum— The constitution determines what por- 
tion of the members shall constitute a quorum to do 
business, i.e., how many must be present. Quorum is 
the Latin of the English words of whom, and has 
strangely come to signify the number or portion of 
any body of men who have power to act. In most 
States a majority will constitute a quorum ; in some a 
greater number is required, two-thirds or three-fifths. 

7. Proceedings Open — Constitutions generally re- 
quire also that the proceedings of legislative bodies 
shall be open to public inspection. The doors may be 
closed against spectators only when the public good 
shall require secrecy. And that the people may be 
fully informed of what is done, each house is required 
to keep and publish a journal of its proceedings. 

8. Interruptions — Provision is also made, either by 
the constitution or by law, against injury or interrup- 
tion to the business of the legislature. Members may 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 41 

not, by any prosecution at law, except for crimes and 
misdemeanors, be hindered during their attendance 
at the sessions of the legislature, nor in going to or 
returning from the same. Each house may compel 
the attendance of absent members. It may for good 
cause expel a member and punish not only its mem- 
bers and officers, but other persons, for disorderly con- 
duct or for obstructing its proceedings. 



CHAPTER X 

MANNER OF ENACTING' LAWS 

1. Power — The legislature of every State lias power 
to enact any law, on any subject, not forbidden by the 

Constitution of the United States or its own constitu- 
tion, and not at variance with any law of Congress, 
In this particular the extent of its power is broader 
than that of Congress, for the Latter can legislate only 
on the particular subjects named in the United States 
Constitution. The subjects which the United States 
Constitution forbids to the State legislatures will be 
found in a later chapter (page 163). The State con- 
stitutions also contain prohibitions meant to restrain 
the legislature from making oppressive laws, or such 
as would endanger the people's absolute rights. (See 
page 15, § 5.) If any laws are passed contrary to these 
constitutional provisions, they will be void and of no 
effect. 

2. Rules — Constitutions prescribe no method of 
passing laws. They leave it entirely to the legislature 
itself. But it would be impossible for such a body to 
act without some order, and so each legislature estab- 



42 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

lishes certain rules, which are seldom departed from. 
But, though ordinarily followed, these rules may be 
departed from, and the law will be just as valid, pro- 
vided a quorum is present and a sufficient number vote 
for it. 

3. Governor's Message — When the two houses are 
duly organized and ready for business, the governor 
sends to both houses a written communication called a 
message, in which, as the constitution requires, he gives 
to the legislature information of the condition of the 
affairs of the State, and recommends such measures as 
he judges necessary and expedient. The message is 
read to each house by its clerk. 

4. Other Measures — But the measures to which the 
governor calls the attention of the legislature are but 
a small portion of those which are considered and 
acted upon. Many are introduced by individual mem- 
bers. Others are brought into notice by the petitions 
of the people in different parts of the State. Petition 
generally signifies a request or prayer. As here used, 
it means a written request to the legislature for some 
favor — generally for a law granting some benefit or 
relief to the petitioners. Petitions are sent to mem- 
bers, usually to those who represent the counties or 
districts in Avhich the petitioners live, and are by these 
members presented to the house. Laws may be intro- 
duced in either house. 

5. Committees — The subjects to be acted on by a 
legislature are very numerous, and if the whole house 
carefully examined each measure and listened to all 
the reasons why the measure was necessary it could 
not finish half its labor. So committees are appointed 
at the beginning of the session, consisting of from 



LEGISLA TTVE DEPA B TMENT 43 

three to seven members, each committee having charge 
of some particular subject: such as, the committee on 
finance, or the money matters of the State, called the 
ways and means committee; the committee on agri- 
culture; on manufactures; on railroads; on education : 
and a great many other subjects. As soon as a meas- 
ure is introduced into the house it is referred to its 
appropriate committee, to examine into its necessity 
and report to the house the result of the examina- 
tion. These committees are so numerous that every 
member is on at Least one or two, and are called 
standing committees, because they continue through 
the session. When a question arises having no re- 
lation to any particular subject on which there is a 
standing committee, it is usually referred to a special 
or select committee appointed to consider this par- 
ticular matter. 

6. Committee Meetings — Committees meet in pri- 
vate rooms (luring hours when the house is not in ses- 
sion; and any person wishing to be heard in favor of 
or against a proposed measure may appear before the 
committee having it in charge. Having duly consid- 
ered the subject, the committee reports to the house 
the information it lias obtained, with the opinion 
whether the measure ouo-ht or ou^ht not to become 
a law. Measures reported against by committees 
seldom receive any further notice from the house. 

7. Bills — If a committee reports favorably upon a 
subject, it usually brings in a bill with its report and 
recommends its passage. A bill is the form or draft 
of a law, Sometimes it is prepared in correct form 
before it is introduced into the house or referred to 
the committee. In other cases, as, for instance, when 



44 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

the subject is brought before the house by petition, the 
committee prepares it. 

8. Three Readings — A bill before it is passed is read 
three times, on three separate days. In some legisla- 
tures the rules allow the first and second readings to be 
on the same day. The first and second readings consist 
often of merely reading the title or the enacting clause. 
Then amendments to it may be introduced, and adopted 
or rejected. Finally, the third reading is had, this 
time the clerk really reading the bill, except where it 
is a long one, and the final vote is taken. Debate on 
the bill is not usually had until after the second read- 
ing. There are a great many rules covering every 
point which may arise, such as the order of business, 
and when debate shall be allowed ; and these rules are 
usually followed : but sometimes, in cases of exigency, 
all the rules are suspended and a bill is introduced and 
passed immediately, without being referred to a com- 
mittee or even being read. 

9. Passage — When the final vote is to be taken, the 
speaker puts the question : " Shall the bill pass ? " If 
a majority of the members present vote in the affirm- 
ative (the speaker also voting), the bill is passed ; if a 
majority vote in the negative, or if the ayes and noes are 
equal, the bill is lost. In a senate where a lieutenant- 
governor presides, not being properly a member, he 
does not vote, except when the ayes and noes are equal, 
in which case there is said to be a tie ; and he deter- 
mines the question by his vote, which is called the 
casting vote. In some States, on the final passage of 
a bill, a bare majority of the members present is not 
sufficient to pass it, in case any members are absent. 
The constitutions of those States require the votes 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 45 

of a majority of all the members elected to each 
house. 

10. Other House — When a bill has passed one house 
it is sent to the other, where it passes through the same 
forms of action; that is, it is referred to a committee, 
reported by the committee to the house, and is read 
three times beiore a vote is taken on its passage. This 
vote having been taken, the bill is returned to the 
house from which it was received, [f it has been 
amended, the amendments must be agreed to by the 
first house, or the second must recede from its amend- 
ments, or the amendments must be so modified as to 
secure the approval of both houses, before the bill can 
become a law. 

11. Veto — But in many of the States a bill, when 
passed by both houses, is not yet a law. As the two 
houses may concur in adopting an unwise measure, an 
additional safeguard is provided against the enactment 
of bad laws, by requiring all bills to be sent to the gov- 
ernor for examination and approval. If he approves 
a bill, he signs it, and it is law ; if he does not sign it, 
it is not a law. In refusing to sign a bill, he is said to 
negative or veto the bill. Veto, Latin, means I forbid. 

12. No Absolute Veto — But no governor has full 
power to prevent the passage of a law. If he does not 
approve a bill, he must return it to the house in which 
it originated, stating his objections to it ; and if it shall 
be again passed by both houses, it will be a law without 
the governor's assent. But in such cases greater major- 
ities are generally required to pass a law. In some 
States a majority of two-thirds of the members present 
is necessary ; in others, a majority of all the members 
elected. In some States if the governor does not return 



46 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

a bill within a certain number of days, it becomes a 
law without his signature and without being considered 
a second time. 

13. Taking- Effect — Laws become operative the min- 
ute the last act is done ; in those States where the gov- 
ernor must approve them, the minute he signs his name, 
unless the law itself provides otherwise. But this would 
often create great hardship, for one might violate a law 
before he had time to hear of it. Therefore constitu- 
tions often provide that a law shall not take effect for 
some days after its passage, or the law itself may so 
provide. 



SECTION III.— EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 
CHAPTER XI 

STATE OFFICERS 

1. Classification — The executive officers of a State 
may be divided into two classes : those whose duties 
relate to the whole State, as the governor or the attor- 
ney-general, and those whose duties relate only to some 
particular portion of it, as the sheriffs. The first class 
are elected by all the people of the State, and have 
their offices at the capital; the latter are elected by 
the people of the particular district (county, town, or 
city), and have their offices there. In this chapter we 
will treat only of the first class. 

2. Governor — The chief executive officer of a State 
is the governor. In a monarchy the chief executive 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 47 

officer is the monarch himself. But there is this differ- 
ence : in a monarchy the monarch is the source of 
power, and all inferior officers are his agents and 
responsible to him alone ; in a republic the people are 
the source of power, and inferior officers are their 
agents, responsible to them with the governor, and not 
to him. lie is called the chief officer because he has 
the highest duties to perform. 

3. Term — The governor is elected by the people, for 
different terms in the different States. In most States 
the term is either two or four years; in some New 
England States it is one year. 

4. Qualifications — The qualifications for the office 
of governor are also different in the different States. 
To be eligible, a person must have been for a certain 
number of years a citizen of the United States, and for 
a term of years preceding his election a resident of 
the State. He must also be above a certain age, which 
in a majority of the States is thirty years; and in some 
States he must own a certain amount of property. 

5. Executive Powers — The governor's executive 
powers and duties are numerous and important. He 
represents the State in its dealings with other States. 
He is commander-in-chief of the military force of the 
State, and can call it out in times of insurrection. He 
is to take care that the laws are faithfully executed, 
and may require information at any time from the 
different executive officers concerning the condition of 
affairs in their respective departments. He communi- 
cates by message to the legislature, at every session, 
information of the condition of the State, and recom- 
mends such measures as he judges necessary and expe- 
dient. He may convene the legislature on extraordi- 



48 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

nary occasions ; that is, when some important matter 
arises requiring immediate attention. 

6. Legislative Powers — In most States the governor 
has the veto power. (See p. 45, §11.) 

7. Judicial Powers — A governor has power to grant 
reprieves and pardons, except in cases of impeachment, 
and, in some States, of- treason. To reprieve is to post- 
pone or delay for a time the execution of the sentence 
of death upon a criminal. To pardon is to annul the 
sentence by forgiving the offence and releasing the 
offender. A governor may also commute a sentence, 
which is to exchange one penalty or punishment for 
another of less severity ; as, when a person sentenced 
to suffer death is ordered to be imprisoned. 

8. Appointments — The governor also appoints some 
executive or judicial officers. The power of appoint- 
ment varies greatly in the different States : in some he 
appoints all the higher executive and judicial officers, 
such as the secretary of state, the attorney-general, or 
the judges of the courts ; in others, those are all elected, 
and he only appoints some lower officers, such as nota- 
ries. He almost never has the power to appoint legis- 
lative officers. He also fills vacancies in executive and 
judicial offices, until the next election, when they occur 
through death or resignation. He has in some cases 
the power of removal for misconduct. 

These are only the principal powers and duties 
devolved on the governor. He has many others. 

(). Councils — In a few States an executive council is 
elected by the people, whose duty it is to advise the 
governor; In many cases, as, for instance, appoint- 
ments, be must obtain their consent. 

lO. Lieutenant-Governor — In some of the States 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 49 

this office does not exist.* He has few duties. In 
most States where the office exists, he presides in the 
senate, in which he has only a casting vote. The chief 
object of this office seems to be to provide a suitable 
person to fill the vacancy in the office of governor in 
case the latter should die, resign, be removed, or other- 
wise become incompetent. 

11. Assistant Officers — Among the executive offi- 
cers who assist in the ad m in ist rat ion of the go vern incut, 
there are in every State some or all of the following: 
a secretary of state, a comptroller or auditor, a treas- 
urer, and an attorney -general. In some States they 
are appointed by the governor, in others by the legis- 
lature, and in others they are elected by the people. 

12. The Secretary of State lias charge of the State 
papers and records. He keeps a record of the official 
acts and proceedings of the legislature and of the 
executive departments, and has the care of the books, 
records, deeds of the State, parchments, the laws 
enacted by the legislature, and all other papers and 
documents required by law to be kept in his office. 

13. The State Comptroller, in some States called 
auditor, manages the financial concerns of the State; 
that is, the business relating to the money, debts, land, 
and other property of the State. lie examines and 
adjusts accounts and claims against the State, and 
superintends the collection of moneys due the State. 
When money is to be paid out he draws a warrant on 
the State treasurer. 

14. The State Treasurer has charge of all the 
moneys of the State, and pays out the same as 

*Viz. : Alabama, Arkansas. Georgia, Maine, Maryland, New 

Hampshire, New Jersey, Oregon, Tennessee, and West Virginia. 
4 



50 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

directed by law, and keeps an accurate account of such 
moneys. 

15. Official Bonds — Auditors, treasurers, and other 
officers intrusted with the care and management of 
money or other property are generally required, before 
they enter on the duties of their offices, to give bonds, 
in sums of certain amount specified in the law, with 
sufficient sureties, for the faithful performance of their 
duties. The sureties are persons who sign the bond 
with the officer, and bind themselves to pay the State 
all damages arising from neglect of duty on the part 
of the officer, not exceeding the sum mentioned in the 
bond. 

16. The Attorney-General is a lawyer who acts for 
the State in lawsuits in which the State is a party. 
He prosecutes persons indebted to the State, and causes 
to be brought to trial persons charged with certain 
crimes. He also gives his opinion on questions of law 
submitted to him by the governor, the legislature, and 
the executive officers. 

17. Other Officers — There are also in some States 
the following officers : a surveyor-general, who super- 
intends the surveying of the lands belonging to the 
State, and who keeps in his office maps describing the 
bounds of the counties and townships ; a superintend- 
ent of schools or superintendent of public instruction, 
who attends to many matters connected with the pub- 
lic schools of the State ; a State printer, who prints the 
laws and all State papers; a State librarian, who has 
charge of the State library ; and others. 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 51 



CHAPTER XII 

COUNTY OFFICERS 

1. Reasons for Division — A State is divided into 
counties,* and each county is divided into towns, 
townships, or districts.! There are several reasons for 
this division: for convenience in the legislative, execu- 
tive, and judicial departments. Some laws may he 
necessary in some parts of the State that are not 
needed in others, and which the people of those parts 
can better make for themselves; and the boundaries 
must he clearly fixed that it may be known who comes 
under the regulations or who can make them. So, too, 
there are many executive officers, such as sheriffs and 
collectors of taxes, but each must have his jurisdiction 
confined to particular limits or there would be great 
confusion. There are many lower courts, too, and the 
jurisdiction of each must be clearly defined. 

2. Origin of County — Counties in England were 
formerly districts governed by counts or earls, from 

* Counties in the same State are about, the same size, ami have 
about the same population; but the counties of one State as compared 
with those of another vary very greatly as to number, size, and 
population. In 1802, Massachusetts had 14 counties, Texas 201, and 
Oregon 31. In Massachusetts there were about 500 square miles in a 
county, in Texas 1,005, and in Oregon 3,050 ; in Massachusetts the 
population in a count} was about 100,000, in Texas 8.500, and in 
Oregon 10,000. Counties exist in every State except South Carolina 
and Louisiana, where districts and parishes prevail. 

f Towns or townships also vary in size, but perhaps a fair average 
would be from five to ten miles square. Towns do not exist, gener- 
ally, in the Southern States or the extreme Western States. There 
the county is divided into districts for special purposes. 



52 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

which comes the name of county, A county was also 
called shire, and an officer was appointed by the count 
or earl to perform certain acts in the principal town 
in the county, which was called shire town, and the 
officer was called shire-reeve, or sheriff. He was a 
more important officer than the sheriff of a county in 
this country now is. The court-house and other county 
buildings are situated at the principal place in the 
county, and it is called the county-seat, or capital. 

3. Political Importance — In the Southern and ex- 
treme Western States the county is the most important 
political division, and exercises most of the local gov- 
ernmental powers, such as many important powers 
with regard to the establishment of common schools, 
regulation of roads, laying and collection of taxes, 
care of the poor, etc. In New England the town 
exercises most of these powers, and the county has 
very little importance. In the remainder — that is, in 
the Middle and Western States (except those far west) 
— these powers are divided between the county and 
town. 

4. Corporations — Counties, towns, cities, and villages 
are municipal corporations. Let us see what a corpora- 
tion is. Persons, in a legal sense, are divided into two 
classes, natural persons and corporations. Natural 
Persons are human beings, as God made them ; Cor- 
porations are artificial persons, or bodies, created by 
law. In other words, a corporation (also called a body 
politic, or body corporate) is an association of persons 
authorized by law to transact business under a common 
name and as a single person. The laws of the State 
give such authority to the inhabitants of counties and 
towns. The people of a town or county have power, 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 53 

to some extent, to buy, hold, and sell property, and sue 
and be sued, as single individuals. Therefore they are 
corporations. So, also, is the State itself. ]>ut there 
are two kinds of corporations: pubUc^ or municipal, 
and private. Public, or municipal corporations are 
those organized for purposes of government, sneh as 
counties, towns, cities, and villages; private corpora- 
tions are all others, such as banks, railroad companies, 
and churches. 

5. County Commissioners — We have seen that a 
county is a corporation, and that corporations have 
power to act as single persons. But a corporation 
must act by means of natural persons, £.$., by its agvuts. 
The chief agent of a county — that is, the body whieli 
exercises the most important corporate powers — is a 
board of county commissioners (usually three). In a 
few States these powers are exercised by and in the 
name of the hoard of supervisors^ whieli is composed of 
the supervisors of the several towns in the county, of 
whom there is one supervisor in each town. These 
boards have charge of the county property, and may 
make orders and contracts in relation to the building 
or repairing of the court-house, jail, and other county 
buildings. In those States in which the county exer- 
cises more political power than the town, these boards 
have many powers witli regard to schools, roads, taxes, 
etc. The following are the more important county 
offices which exist in every State : 

6. County Treasurer — There is in each county a 
treasurer to receive and pay out the moneys of the 
county, as required. There is also, in some States, a 
county auditor to examine and adjust the accounts and 
debts of the county. The business of county treasurers 



54 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

and auditors in their respective counties is of the same 
nature as that of State auditors and treasurers, and 
they are required to give bonds in the same way. In 
States in which there is no county auditor, the duties 
of auditor are performed by the treasurer. 

7. Recorder — -There is also in each county a register 
or recorder, who records in books provided for that 
purpose all deeds, mortgages, and other instruments of 
writing required by law to be recorded. In New York 
and in some other States the business of a register or 
recorder is done by a county clerk, who is also clerk of 
the several courts held in the county. In some States 
deeds, mortgages, and other written instruments are 
recorded by the town clerks of the several towns. 

8. Sheriff — Another county officer is a sheriff, whose 
duty it is to execute all warrants, writs, and other pro- 
cesses directed to him by the courts ; to apprehend per- 
sons charged with crime ; and to take charge of the 
jail and of the prisoners therein. It is his duty, also, 
to preserve the public peace ; and he may cause all per- 
sons who break the public peace within his knowledge 
or view to give bonds, with sureties, for keeping the 
peace and for appearing at the next court to be held in 
the county, and to commit them to jail if they refuse 
to give such bonds. A sheriff is assisted by deputies. 

9. Coroner — There are in each county one or more 
coroners, whose principal duty is to inquire into the 
cause of the death of persons who have died by vio- 
lence, or suddenly, and by means unknown. Notice 
of the death of a person having so died is given to a 
coroner, who institutes an examination. A jury is 
summoned to attend the examination; witnesses are 
examined ; and the jury give their opinion in writing as 



EXECUTIVE DEPART3IENT 55 

to the cause and manner of the death. Such inquiry is 
called a coroners inquest. 

10. The District Attorney is a lawyer who attends 
all courts in the county in which persons are tried for 
crimes, and conducts the prosecution. As all crimes 
and breaches of the peace are considered as committed 
against the State, and prosecuted in its name, this 
attorney is sometimes called State's attorney, or j 
cuting attorney. 

11. other Officers — There are often other officers 
in each county ; such as, asst ssors, wh\ I he value 
of each one's property so that it may he known what 
tax he shall pay; collectors of taxes} a county sur- 
veyor; a superintendent qf schools. 

12. Elected — County officers are generally elected 
by the people of the county, for terms of from one to 
four years. Some of them are, in some of the States, 
appointed by some authority prescribed by the consti- 
tution or laws of the State. 

13. Whom They Represent — While the different 
county officers are alike in this respect, that their 
jurisdiction extends only to their particular county, 
and also in this fact, that in their official acts they act 
as representatives or agents of the people ; they differ 
from each other in this, that while some represent the 
people of the whole State (and in that sense may he 
called State officers), others represent only the people 
of their own county. Thus, when a sheriff arrests a 
man for crime, it is the State which arrests him by the 
hand of its agent in that county ; when the district 
attorney prosecutes him, it is the State which is trying 
him for the crime against itself. (See page 83, foot- 
note.) On the other hand the county commissioners 



56 STATE O0VERN3IENTS 

commonly act only as agents of their county. Some 
officers may represent the State in some of their duties, 
and the county in others. 



CHAPTER XIII 

TOWN OFFICERS 

1. Towns — In all the States except those far west 
and most of the Southern States, each county is subdi- 
vided. These subdivisions are called towns at the East, 
and towns or townships at the West and South. At the 
West and South a village or city is often called a town. 
But in this book we shall use the word town as mean- 
ing an organized subdivision of a county. In those 
States where towns do not exist, the county exercises 
all the local governmental powers and has all the 
necessary officers. It must be remembered, then, that 
this chapter does not apply to all the States. 

2. Chief Officer — Since a town is a corporation, it 
must, like a county, have some one to represent it and 
act for it. The principal officer, or board, Avhose duty 
this is, has different names in different States. In the 
New England towns there are what are called select- 
men, three or more in each town. In a few States 
there are trustees of townships. In a few other States 
there is in each town one such officer, called super- 
visor. The powers and duties of these officers are the 
most numerous and important in New England, where 
the town is the most important division of the State. 
They have duties with regard to taking charge of the 
town property, laying out and repairing roads, collect- 
ing taxes, providing for the poor, etc. In those States 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 57 

where the county is the more important division, the 
town officers have fewer of these duties, and the 
county officers have more. 

3. Treasurer — There is often a town treasurer, vrith 
duties, in his own town, analogous to those of a county 
treasurer. 

4. Town Clerk — A town clerk in each town keeps 
the records, books, and papers of the town. He records 
in a book the proceedings of town meetings, the names 
of the persons elected, and such other papers as are 
required by law to be recorded. 

5. Constables — There are several constables in eacli 
town. Their principal duties are to serve all writs and 
processes issued by justices of the peace. The business 
of a constable in executing the orders of a justice of 
the peace is similar to that of a sheriff in relation to 
the county courts. 

6. Highways — For the repairing of highways and 
hri<!<j<s, a town is divided by the proper officers into as 
many road districts as may be judged convenient ; and 
a person residing in each district is chosen, called or, r- 
seer, or supervisor, or surveyor of highways, whose 
duty it is to see that the roads and bridges are repaired 
and kept in order in his district. In some eases a tax 
is laid for the purpose, and ordinary laborers do the 
work. In others, each one taxed may work on the 
road himself a certain number of days, or he may pay 
the tax, according as he wishes. 

7. Overseers of the Poor provide for the support of 
paupers belonging to the town, who have no near rela- 
tives able to support them. In some States there is in 
each county a poor-house, to which the paupers of the 
several towns are sent to be provided for ; the expense 



58 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

to be charged to the towns to which such poor per- 
sons belonged. 

8. Other Officers — There are often in every town 
other inferior officers : assessors and collectors of taxes 
(see Chapter XV.) ; certain school officers • fence view- 
ers, who settle disputes as to division fences ; pound 
keepers, who take charge of stray animals; sealers, 
who keep correct copies of the standard of weights 
and measures ; and others. 

9. Elected — Most town officers are elected by the 
electors of their respective towns at the annual town 
meetings, for terms of one year. 

10. Town Meetings — These are meetings of the 
electors held once a year in every town for the election 
of town officers and for certain other business. They 
exist only in New England and a few other States 
which have been under the influence of New England. 
At them the people not only elect officers, but take 
some share in the government. For instance, they 
have power to vote what money shall be raised for 
school purposes, for highways, and other purposes; 
what salaries shall be paid different officers ; what 
proceedings shall be taken at law ; and other powers. 
This, as far as it goes, is pure democracy. With a 
county it is different. The people of a county never 
meet together except to elect officers, and take no part, 
directly, in the direction of affairs. 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 59 

CHAPTER XIV 

CITIES AND VILLAGES 

1. Reasons for Incorporation — A city, or a village,* 
is a particular portion of a town which lias become so 
thickly populated that a different kind of government 
is needed from that of the rest of the town. For 
instance, where there are many people who use the 
streets, sidewalks will be necessary; and where the 
houses are near to each other, as in the ordinary vil- 
lage, fire-engines and fire-companies will be necessary 
to prevent the whole place from being destroyed ; and 
if the population is still more dense, as in a city, many 
other regulations are necessary — such as, with regard 
to police, water supply, cleaning the streets, sewers, 
etc. But towns do not have the power to regulate 
these things. It is thought best that the people living 
in those thickly populated portions should do it them- 
selves. The legislature of the State gives them these 
powers by incorporating them into a village or city. 

2. Charter — Whenever, therefore, the inhabitants 
of any portion of a town become so numerous as to 
require a government with more powers than the rest 
of the town, they petition the legislature for a law 
incorporating them into a village, or, if they are very 
numerous, a city. The law or act of incorporation is 
visually called a charter. The word charter is from the 

* The word village very often means only a collection of houses, or 
of people living near one another, but in this chapter we shall use 
the word for an incorporated village. In Connecticut and Pennsyl- 
vania an incorporated village is called a borough. 



GO STATE GOVERNMENTS 

Latin eft aria, which means paper. The instruments of 
writing by which kings or other sovereign powers 
granted rights and privileges to individuals or corpora- 
tions were written on paper or parchment, and called 
charters. In this country it is commonly used to desig- 
nate an act of the legislature conferring privileges and 
powers upon cities, villages, and other corporations. 

3. Its Contents — The charter describes the bounda- 
ries of the city or village, prescribes what officers it 
shall have, and what shall be their powers and duties. 

4. City Officers — The chief executive officer of a 
city is a mayor. A city is divided into wards of con- 
venient size, in each of which are chosen one or more 
aldermen (usually two) and such other officers as are 
named in the charter. The mayor and aldermen con- 
stitute the city council, which is a kina of legislature, 
having the power to pass such laws (commonly called 
ordinances) as the government of the city requires.* 
There are also elected in the several wards assessors, 
constables, collectors, and other necessary officers, 
whose duties in their respective wards are similar to 
those of like-named officers in country towns, or town- 
ships. 

5. Village Officers — The chief executive officer of a 
village is, in some States, called president. The vil- 
lage is not divided into wards, the number of its 
inhabitants being too small to require such division. 
Instead of a board of aldermen there is a board of 
trustees or directors, who exercise similar powers. The 
president of a village is generally chosen by the trust- 
ees from their own number. In some States incor 

* In some cases there are two boards, in analogy with the two 
legislative houses of the State. 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 



61 



porated villages are called tovms, and their chief 
executive officer is called mayor. 

6. General Law — The constitutions of some States 
require the legislature to pass a general law prescrib- 
ing the manner in which the people in any place may 



Diagram showing the relation between County, 



Town, City, and Village. 




The whole diagram represents a county. 

The numbers represent the towns into which it is divided. 

• A represents a city. 

b, c, d, and e represent villages. 

form themselves into an incorporated village without 
a special law or charter. 

7. Subject to Laws of State — The inhabitants of 
cities and villages, however, are not governed alone by- 
laws made by the common council and the trustees. 
Those laws and regulations relate only to local mat- 
ters. Most of the laws enacted by the legislature are 
of general application, and have the same effect in 



62 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

cities and villages as elsewhere. Thus the laws of the 
State require that taxes shall be assessed and levied 
upon the property of the citizens of the State to 
defray the public expenses, and the people of the cities 
are required to pay their just proportion of the same ; 
but the city authorities lay and collect additional 
taxes for city purposes. 

8. Corporations — We have seen that the State, 
counties, towns, cities, and villages are all corporations, 
and that there are also other corporations, such as 
banks, railroad companies, etc. Now all corporations 
are alike in some particulars. They all continue after 
the persons first composing them are dead. They all 
have power to buy and sell property, and to borrow 
money to a certain extent. But they also differ in 
some respects. A State differs from other municipal 
corporations in the manner of formation. A State is 
formed by the people when they adopt the constitution ; 
the other municipal corporations — i.e., cities, towns, etc. 
— are formed by the legislature. Again, all municipal 
corporations differ from other corporations in two par- 
ticulars : their purpose and their membership. Muni- 
cipal corporations are organized only for purposes of 
government ; the others are organized for other pur- 
poses, such as business (banks, insurance companies, 
etc.), religion (churches), or charity (hospitals, etc.). 
Of a municipal corporation every one is a member who 
lives within its limits, whether he wishes to be or not ; 
but in other corporations one only becomes a member 
by his own choice. 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 63 

CHAPTER XV 

TAXES 

1. Reasons for Them — Every government must 
have the power of providing means for its support. 

The different State, county, and town officers must be 
paid salaries; money is needed for public buildings, such 

as State-houses, court-houses, jails, etc. ; and there are 
other necessities. The money which is needed to pay the 
expenses of administering the government, if the State 
county, or town has no permanent source of revenue 
or income, must he raised by taxation. A tax is a sum 
of money assessed upon the person of a citizen for the 
use of the government. When each one is required to 
pay a certain sum, the same for all, it is called a j><>11- 
tax, or capitation tax, being a certain sum on every 
poll, or head. But, as persons ought to contribute to 
the public expenses according to their ability, taxes are 
more just when laid upon the citizens in proportion to 
the property each one owns. In ordinary speech we 
say that the property itself is taxed. 

2. Land Tax most Common — Both real and personal 
property * are subject to taxation ; but in the United 
States most of the taxes are laid upon the land, for the 
reason that it is always difficult for the assessors to 
ascertain all the personal property each one owns. Poll- 
taxes are laid in many States, but they are very small. 

* Real estate, or real property, is land with the buildings and other 
articles erected or growing thereon. Personal estate, or personal 
property, is every other kind of property ; such as, goods, stocks and 
bonds, money, and debts due from debtors. 



04 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

3. Assessment — This means valuation. As every 
person is to be taxed in proportion to the value of his 
property, it is necessary, first, to make a correct valua- 
tion of all his taxable property. For this purpose, the 
assessor or assessors pass through the town, and make 
a list of the names of all the taxable inhabitants, and 
the estimated value of the property, real and personal, 
of each. If any one thinks his property is valued at 
too high a rate, he has an opportunity to appear before 
the assessors and ask to have the assessment reduced. 
The town assessors then make returns to the proper 
State and county officers of all the property, and its 
valuation, in the town. 

4. Information — In some States persons liable to 
taxation are themselves required to furnish lists of all 
their taxable property, printed blank lists having been 
previously distributed among them for this purpose. 
To secure an accurate valuation, the assessors (called 
also listers) may require persons to make oath that 
they have made a true statement of their property and 
its value. 

5. Exemptions — There are certain kinds of property 
which are exempt from taxation ; such as the corporate 
property of the State, of counties, and of towns, in- 
cluding the buildings in which the public business is 
done, the prisons, jails, asylums, etc., and the lands 
attached to them ; school-houses and churches, with 
the lands attached ; bury ing-groun els, and the property 
of literary and charitable institutions. But the prop- 
erty of business corporations, as railroad, banking, 
insurance, manufacturing, and other stock companies, 
iike that of individuals, is liable to taxation. 

6. Three Amounts — Before a tax-list can be made 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT C>5 

out, showing what each one's tax is to be, it must be 
known what amount is to be collected in each town. 
This amount is made lip of three pails: first, the sum 
wanted to pay the expenses of the town for the cur- 
rent year; second, the town's share of the county 
expenses; and third, its proportionate share of the 
expenses of the State government, or of what is to be 
raised for State purposes. In this country the amount 
that each one pays for State purposes is usually very 
much less than what he pays for county and town 
purposes. The ratio of the county to the town tax 
varies in proportion to the political importance of the 
county and town. In many States there is no town 
tax. 

7. Apportionment — The apportionment of the 
amount of the State and county expenses among the 
several towns is made according to the amount of 
property in each as valued by the assessors. The State 
auditor or comptroller, having received from the several 
counties returns of the value of the property in each 
county, is enabled to determine its quota of the amount 
to be raised for State purposes. He sends to the proper 
officers in each county (county commissioners, or board 
of supervisors) a statement showing what part of the 
State tax the county is to pay. The county officers 
add to each county's share of the State expenses the 
sum to be raised in the county for county purposes, 
and apportion the whole amount among the towns in 
proportion to the value of the property in each. Then 
the town officers, in turn, add to each town's share of 
the amount of the State and county expenses the 
amount to be raised for town purposes, and this gives 
the whole sum to be collected :n the town. This sum 

5 



66 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

is divided up among the inhabitants of the town in 
proportion to their property as valued b}^ the assessors, 
and a tax-list, showing what each one is to pay, is 
given to the collector. In cities and villages each 
one's tax includes also his proportionate share of the 
amount to be raised for city, or village, purposes. 
Taxes in cities are usually very much higher than 
anywhere else. 

8. Collection — When the collector has received the 
taxes he pays them over to the town treasurer. The 
latter retains the portion collected for town purposes, 
and remits the remainder to his county treasurer. The 
county treasurer retains the portion collected for county 
purposes and remits the remainder to the State treas- 
urer. The system of assessment and collection of taxes 
varies in the different States. The system described 
in this chapter applies chiefly to the Northern States. 

9. Tax Sales — Where a person neglects to pay his 
tax, means are provided by law to enforce payment. 
If he is taxed for personal property, sometimes the 
collector may seize his goods and sell them, and some- 
times suit must be brought in the usual way. But ii 
he is taxed for land, a different course is pursued. In 
a certain sense, the land itself is taxed. If the tax is 
not paid within a certain time, the proper authorities 
sell or lease the land for a certain period to any one 
who will pay the tax. The owner then has the right 
to redeem within a certain time, generally two or three 
years, hy paying to the purchaser what he has paid for 
taxes, with interest. The purchaser does not have the 
right to take possession of the land until the time to 
redeem has expired. 

10. Assessments — Assessment has been used in the 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT f,7 

sense of valuation. But it is also often used to mean 
a tax laid in a city to pay for some public improvement ; 
such as, the building of a sewer, the paving of a street, 
the laying out of a park, etc. In such cases the benefit 
of the improvement is felt, Bometimes wholly, generally 
chiefly, by those who live near, and therefore they are 
required to pay for it. For instance, when a sewer is 
built in a side street, only the property on each side of 
that street is assessed for it. 

11. Indirect Taxes — The taxes that have been 
described are called direct taxes. Bnt there are also 
indirect taxes, so called because, when finally paid, 
they are not paid directly to the government as a tax, 
but as a part of the price of something. They include 
duties which are paid on goods exported from a country 
or imported into it, on goods manufactured, licenses 
for carrying on certain trades, or for doing certain 
things, etc. For instance, if a tax is laid on the manu- 
facture of liquors, the manufacturer adds enough to 
the price of the liquor to cover the tax. and so the con- 
sumer, when he buys, indirectly pays the tax. Only a 
small portion of the revenue of a State is derived from 
indirect taxation. The United States Constitution for- 
bids' any State to lay import or export duties. 

CHAPTER XVI 

EDUCATION 

1. A Proper Object of Government — The proper 
object of government is to promote the welfare and 
happiness of its citizens. For this purpose it must 
protect the people in the enjoyment of life and the 



68 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

fruits of their labor. But it should go further, and 
make express provision for improving the condition 
of the people, especially the less fortunate portions of 
them. The prosperity of a state or nation depends 
essentially upon the education of its citizens. Ignorance 
tends to make men idle and vicious. On the other 
hand, education not only teaches them better ways of 
living, but impels them to follow the better ways, and 
gives them higher purposes in life. 

2. A Political Necessity — But further, we believe 
that a government by the people is better adapted 
than any other to promote the general welfare where 
the people are fitted to govern. But if the people 
are not properly educated, they are incapable of self- 
government. Some children are educated at private 
schools. But very many are unable to pay for the 
education of their children in that way, and therefore 
each State has established a system of common schools,. 
at which the children of all may be taught at the 
public expense. These are the schools we shall treat 
of in this chapter. It is to its common-school system 
that the United States owes much of its prosperity 
as a nation. This system has been developed more 
highly at the North than at the South. But the 
constitutions adopted in the Southern States since the 
late civil war have made much more adequate provi- 
sion for this necessity than existed in those States 
previously. 

3. Support — The schools are supported chiefly by 
taxation. In some cases those who send their children 
there have to pay a higher rate than others. But in 
almost all the States there is provided a school fund, 
the income from which is applied to aid in their sup- 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMEXT G9 

port. A fund is a sum of money, the income from 
which is set apart for a particular purpose. Thus tin 
interest of a school fund is applied in building school- 
houses, paying teachers, etc. The whole amount ex- 
pended on common schools in the United States in 
1892 was about {155,980,800. 

4. Creation of School Funds — These were created 
in the older States by the State's appropriating certain 
lands owned by it for that purpose. They were, in 
many cases, largely increased by certain moneys re- 
ceived from the United States. In L836 there had 
accumulated in the national treasury about thirty 
millions of dollars over and above what was needed 
for the support of the government. By an act of 
Congress, this surplus revenue was distributed among 
the States then existing, to be kept by them until called 
for by Congress. That it never will he called for is 
now almost certain. Many of the States have ap- 
propriated large portions of their respective shares for 
school purposes. From its having been said t<> be only 
deposited with the States, this fund is sometimes called 
the United States d<j><>s'/t fund. As t<> the Western 
States, at an early period, while most of the territory 
from which they have been formed was yet the prop- 
erty of the United States, and uninhabited, Congress 
passed acts by which a certain proportion of the land 
in every township is reserved for the support of schools 
therein. By these acts, in some of those States one 
thirty-sixth, in others one eighteenth of the whole 
State has been thus appropriated, besides smaller por- 
tions granted for the benefit of a university in each 
State. In States which may be hereafter formed out 
of existing territories, land will be reserved in the 



70 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

same way. The whole amount of the permanent 
common-school funds in the United States has been 
calculated to be about $140,000,000. The income 
from this is applied to school purposes every year. 

5. Districts — The towns, or townships, of a State 
are generally divided into districts of proper size, in 
each one of which is established a school, to which all 
the children of the district may go, free of expense. 
These schools are sometimes called district schools, 
sometimes common schools, and sometimes public 
schools. Each district has apportioned to it its share 
of the income of the school fund, and the rest of the 
money needed to support the school is raised from the 
inhabitants of the district or the State by taxation. 
One or more trustees or directors are chosen in each 
district to manage the school affairs. 

6. State Superintendent — In many States there 
is an officer called the State superintendent of public 
schools, or superintendent of pnulic instruction. The 
superintendent collects information relating to the 
schools ; the number of children residing in each dis- 
trict, and the number taught ; the number of school- 
houses, and the amount yearly expended ; and other 
matters concerning the operation and effects of the 
common-school system. Sometimes he also apportions 
the money arising from the State funds among the 
several counties. He reports to the legislature at 
every session the information he has collected, and 
suggests such improvements in the school system as 
he thinks ought to be made. There are officers in 
each county or town to aid him in this work. There 
are also officers in each county or town who examine 
the teachers periodically to see if they are competent. 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 71 

7. Tirades — Public schools are divided into three 
grades: primary schools, for the youngest pupils; 
grammar schools, in which are taught, besides the 
ordinary, some of the higher branches of study ; and 
high schools, for the most advanced, in which are 
taught the studies necessary for a business education, 
and frequently the languages and higher mathematics. 
Many contend that the public should not be taxed to 
furnish a higher education, but that it should be left 
to the private citizen. Others maintain that the gen- 
eral good demands that some should be highly edu- 
cated. But, though many States have high schools, 
universities, and other educational institutions, sup- 
ported or aided by the State, the great body of schools 
in the country still are of the lower grade. 

8. Compulsory Attendance — In general, the State 
does not compel parents to send their children to 
school, but relies upon their own sense of duty and in- 
terest. But in a few States it does, and every child is 
compelled to go to some school, public or private, a cer- 
tain portion of every year between the ages of - 
and fourteen. And the idea is gaining strength in the 
country that the interest of the whole people requires 
that every child should be educated to a certain degree. 

9. Normal Schools — These are schools in which per- 
sons are trained to be teachers. If a State is to furnish 
education to its citizens, it must provide suitable educa- 
tors, and therefore most States have established one 
or more of these schools. They are free to any one, 
but in return the person taught must serve a certain 
length of time (two or three years) as a teacher in the 
common schools of the State. In that way he pays 
for his education. 



72 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

CHAPTER XVII 

PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 

1. Duty of Government — We have seen that a gov 
era men t ought to provide means not only for the pro- 
tection of the lives and property of its citizens, but also 
for their education. But there are further duties which 
it owes to its citizens. It ought to furnish protection 
and aid to those who are unfortunate, the insane, the 
blind, orphan children, and others who are unable to 
care for themselves. So, too, if there is any great 
enterprise in which all the people of the State are 
interested, but which is too large or too costly to be 
carried on by private individuals, the State should 
render aid. Again, a State should exercise some con- 
trol over the operations of corporations having large 
powers, such as railroads and banks, in order to prevent 
fraud upon the people. These duties are important 
functions of the executive department. 

2. Asylums — Every State establishes and supports 
some of these for the insane, blind, deaf and dumb, 
inebriate, orphans, and others. At them support and 
medical aid are furnished to such as have no means of 
providing for themselves. Counties, towns, and cities 
often maintain institutions of the same kind. 

3. Canals — These do not exist in all the States, and 
in some they are constructed and managed by private 
corporations. But in others they are State works, 
built by the State and managed by officers elected 
by the people. New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio 
have many. Their object is to furnish cheap trans- 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 73 

portation, and at one time they were considered of 
vast importance, but railroads have in a great meas- 
ure taken their place. Where the State undertakes 
such an enterprise, very often a fund is provided by 
the State, the income of which is applied to the object, 
and the United States increases this fund by grants to 
it of public lands, because the canal is a benefit not 
only to the people of the State, but also to all the 
people of the Nation. 

4. Railroads — These are seldom State works, but 
they of ten receive aid from the St;it<' in the form of 
money lent them, public land granted to them, or State 
guaranties of their bonds. In a certain other respeel 
all railroads are aided by the State. The property 
which a railroad company requires very often cannot 
be purchased, as the owners will not sell, and no person 
or corporation has, in itself, the right to compel them 
to sell. But a State has the right to take any one's 
property for public use on paying its value. This is 
called the right of eminent domain, and tins right the 
State delegates to the railroad company for the time 
being. Appraisers are appointed who value the land, 
and on payment of that price the company takes it. 
The land necessary for a canal is acquired in the same 
way. 

5. Control of Corporations — The State generally 
exercises some control over certain corporations which, 
like railway or canal companies, banks, and insurance 
companies, have large powers and privileges. This is 
to prevent their being used to the fraud and injury of 
the public. In some States there are departments, 
such as the hank department) or the insurance depart- 
ment) all subordinate branches of the executive depart- 



74 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

ment, which are required to exercise supervision over 
the corporations belonging to their department within 
the State. They collect information with regard to 
them, their property and business, by means of exam- 
inations and of annual reports Avhich the corporations 
are required to make, and this information is published. 
When State banks issued bills (which were only their 
promises to pay money), they were often required to 
deposit a certain amount of property with the State 
to secure those who used their bills as money against 
loss. So, too, insurance companies are sometimes 
required to make deposits with the government to 
secure their policy-holders. There are other ways in 
which a State exercises control over corporations. 

6. State-Prisons — These are prisons maintained by 
the State, in which criminals convicted of the higher 
crimes are confined. The county jails are for the 
lower grades of criminals. Convicts are forced to 
work while confined. In many States their labor is 
leased by the State to certain contractors, who pay the 
State as for so many laborers. Thus State-prisons are 
sometimes rendered self-supporting. 

7. State Debts — Very often the public works under- 
taken by a State require more money than can be con- 
veniently raised at once by taxation. So, too, perhaps 
the chief benefit is going to accrue, not to people liv- 
ing at the time the work is done, but many years later, 
and therefore posterity should bear some share of the 
burden. In such case the State borrows the money 
and issues its bonds for it, also called State stock. 
Counties, towns, and cities, in the same way, often 
incur debt and issue bonds for public works. But 
there is this difference : counties, towns, and cities may 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 75 

be sued in the courts, but there is no way for a private 
individual to force a State to pay its debts. Such 
refusal to pay is called repudiation^ and several of the 
States have repudiated their debts in part. For the 
reason that there is no remedy, repudiation is the more 
dishonorable. In the late Civil War the Southern 
States contracted large debts, but these the United 
States Constitution forbids them to pay. No govern- 
ment could recognize as just, or allow to be paid, if it 
could prevent it, any debts incurred in a rebellion 
against it. 

CHAPTER XVIII 

MILITIA 

1, Meaning of Militia — Every nation lias its mili- 
tary force to resist foreign enemies and crush rebellion. 
It consists of two portions, the standing unity and the 
militia. The standing army is all the time organized, 
equipped, and drilled, and its members have no other 
occupation. The militia consists of all the other able- 
bodied men in the nation (between certain ages), but it 
is not called into service except in time of war or insur- 
rection. In this country the Nation has a small stand- 
ing army, and its militia consists of the militia of all 
the States. The States have no standing army, but 
each has its militia. 

2. Of AVhoin Composed — The militia of a State 
consists of able-bodied male citizens of the United 
States between the ages of eighteen and forty-live 
years who reside in the State, except such as are 
exempt by the laws of the State and of the United 
States. Persons exempt by the laws of the State are 



76 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

generally members of the State legislative, executive, 
and judicial departments, clergymen, teachers, physi- 
cians, firemen, and members of military companies 
who have served a certain time.* Persons exempt by 
United States laws are members of the national legis- 
lative, executive, and judicial departments, pilots, mari- 
ners, and a few others. 

3. Commander-in-Chief — By the constitutions of 
the several States, the governors are made the com- 
manders-in-chief of the militia of their respective 
States. The governor has power to call it out in time 
of insurrection or rebellion,! and when called out he 
exercises the usual powers of commander over it. He 
cannot, however, send any member out of the State 
without his own consent. 

4. Organization — The militia, when organized, is 
divided in the usual way into brigades, regiments, 
companies, etc., with the usual officers : adjutant-gen- 
eral, colonels, captains, etc. In some States the offi- 
cers are appointed by the governor or the legislature ; 
in others they are elected by the men they are to com- 
mand. But in most of the States the militia remains 
practically unorganized. 

5. Training- — For many years after the Revolution, 
when the militia was more or less organized all the 
time, it was called out annually in each State for the 
purpose of training ; but these annual trainings were 
seen to be of so little value that they gradually fell 

* In many States those, also, are exempt who have conscientious 
scruples as to whether war is ever right, such as the Quakers. 

f An insurrection is an attempt of persons to prevent the execu- 
tion of a law. Rebellion generally means nearly the same ; but more 
properly it signifies a revolt, or an attempt to overthrow the govern- 
ment to establish a different one. 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 77 

into disuse. At present the militia in this count ry is 
not much more, practically, than an imaginary body, 
and the great body of the people have no military 
duties to perform. 

6. Volunteer Regiments — But occasions do arise 
when it is necessary for a State to have some organ- 
ized, equipped, and drilled force at hand. This neces- 
sity is supplied by the volunteer companies, <>r regi- 
ments, existing in most of the States. These organize 
themselves, elect their own members and officers, select 
their own uniform, and the branch of the service to 
which they will attach themselves. The State usually 
grants them more or less aid, in the way of arms, 
armories, etc. When organized, they come under the 
military laws of the State, and are subject to orders of 
the commander-in-chief, in the same manner as the 
militia is, and he can call them out when necessary. 
These regiments are called in some States the national 
guard, and popularly they are called the militia. 

7. United States Militia— We have said the militia 
of the United States consisted of the militia of all the 
States. The President has power to call it out at 
times when the standing army is not sufficient, and 
when so called out it passes out of State control and 
under that of the United States. I>ut this refers to 
the unorganized militia. Over the volunteer regi- 
ments spoken of in the preceding section the United 
States has no control. The national government will 
probably never call out the unorganized militia, but will 
rely on the formation of volunteer regiments. In the 
late Civil War most of the United States army was 
composed of volunteer regiments formed in the loyal 
States, and then mustered into the United States service. 



78 STATE GOVERNMENTS 



SECTION IV.— JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 
CHAPTEK XIX 

COURTS 

1. Necessity — The judicial department consists of 
the courts of a State. We have seen that the legisla- 
tive department makes laws and the executive depart- 
ment carries them out ; but there is one other function 
of government which properly comes in between the 
making and the execution of the law. This is its 
application to particular cases when disputes arise. 
Yery often in a particular case it will be hard to tell 
what the truth is, as one party will say one thing and 
the other another ; and again one side will claim that 
the law does not include his case, and the other side 
will claim that it does. These points must be decided 
before the law can be executed. The executive depart- 
ment might decide them, but justice is more likely to 
be done if the one that decides has nothing else to do 
with the case. For this reason the separate judicial 
department is established. The higher courts of a 
State are usually established by its constitution, the 
lower courts by the legislature. 

2. Diversity — There is great diversity among the 
States in the names and powers of the different courts. 
Wo two States are exactly alike. But the following 
sketch gives a general idea of the judicial system pre- 
vailing in most of the States. 

3. Court for the Trial of Impeachments — This is 
the name applied to the upper house of the legislature 



JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 79 

when trying a public officer for malfeasance (/>•., cor- 
rupt conduct) in office.* Impeachment is the forma] 

act of the lower house by which it makes the charge 
against him.f Generally the lower house has the sole 
right of impeachment, and the upper house the sole 
right to try impeachments. On such trial the upper 
house is in reality a court. :{; 

4. Supreme Court — This is the name usually given 
to the highest court — of whicli there is only one — in 
the State. It consists of several judges (very often 
three), and lias usually only appellate jurisdiction^ 
Appeals may be taken to it in both civil and 
criminal cases,] from the next lower — the Circuit — 
courts. 

5. Circuit Courts m l — Of these there are generally a 

*As, if a governor, for money offered him, should approve and 
sign a law ; or a judge should, for money or from some other selfish 
or personal motive, give a wrong judgment 

fit must be remembered (hat impeachment is not the conviction 
of the offence, but only the accusation. It is analogous to an indict- 
ment by a grand jury. (See page ST.) It may happen, therefore, 
that an officer is impeached and afterward acquitted on the trial, as 
President Andrew Johnson was in 18G8. 

\ This practice has come from Great Britain, where the impeach- 
ment is made by the House of Commons, and the House of Lords is 
the High Court of Impeachment. 

§Thc word jurisdiction is from the Latin jus, law, and dictio, a 
pronouncing or speaking, nence the jurisdiction of a court means 
the class of cases in which it has power to pronounce the law. A 
court is said to have original jurisdiction when the ease may originate 
(be commenced) in it ; it has appellate jurisdiction when it may hear 
the case on appeal from a lower court. 

|| Civil cases are those between private parties for debt or for some 
injury to person or property. Criminal cases are those in which the 
State seeks to punish one for some criminal offence. 

If They derive their name from this circumstance : Each court has 



SO STATE GOVERNMENTS 

number (from ten to thirty) in every State, one foi 
each district into which the State is divided. In many 
States they are called district courts, because there is 
one in each district ; in a few they correspond to the 
superior courts, so called because they are of higher 
grade than the justices' courts. They have original 
jurisdiction, in general, of all classes of cases, both 
civil and criminal, and are the courts in which the 
great body of trials are had. They also hear appeals 
from the lower courts. 

G. Justices of the Peace — In each town, or similar 
division, there are usually several of these officers. 
Each justice holds court, and has power to try civil 
cases which involve small amounts (in some States it 
must be less than $100, in others less than $50), and to 
try persons who have committed small offences. They 
also have important powers with regard to arresting 
and examining those accused of higher crimes. (See 
page 88.) In many States they have executive duties 
also. 

7. Probate Courts — There is usually one of these in 
every county, composed of a single judge. They are 
quite different in character from the courts already 
described. Their powers and duties relate to the 
estates of deceased persons, to see that they go to the 

its district, including several counties, and as the law usually re- 
quires', for the convenience of suitors, that the court be held once or 
twice a year in each county, the judges travel from one county to 
another. 

In some of the States of New England this system of courts does 
nol exist. The highest court performs their duties, having both 
original and appellate jurisdiction. Tt will be noticed that New 
England is dill* rent from the rest of the country in many of her 
political institutions. 



JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 81 

persons entitled to them. They take proof of wills 
and empower executors to act.* Where a person dies 
without a will the probate court appoints an adminis- 
trator, who distributes the personal property (for dis- 
tinction between personal and real property, see page 
63) among the relatives to whom it belongs by law.f 
It has power to remove the executor or administrator 
if lie does not do his duty ; to settle his accounts ; and 
decide disputes which arise, as to the distribution of 
the estate. Probate courts also take charge of the 
estates of minors whose parents have died, and appoint 
guardians for them. For this reason they are some- 
times called orphans' courts. Appeals maybe taken 
from these courts to the Supreme Court, or sometimes 
to the Circuit Courts. 

8. Courts of Chancery exist in several States. 
They have power to grant certain kinds of relief that, 
in the States where they exist, the other courts can 
not ; such as compelling a man to perform a contract, 
instead of awarding money as damages for his not 
doing it, or granting an injunction against one's doing 
an unlawful act. These are also called courts of equity. 
It is unnecessary to enumerate their powers, as in 
most States they do not exist, and there the other 
courts have all their powers. 

9. Other Courts — In some States there are other 

* A will is a writing by which a person directs to whom his prop- 
erty shall be given after his death. The Latin probatus means proof, 
from which the courts derive their name. An executor is a person 
appointed in a will to carry out its provisions. 

f An administrator has no jurisdiction over the land owned by 
the deceased that the heirs can take possession of without any 
authority from the court. An executor, in general, executes the 
will both as regards personal and real property. 
6 



82 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

courts with various powers. County courts, or courts 
of common pleas, exist in some, having jurisdiction in 
civil cases, somewhat higher than justices' courts; 
courts of sessions and courts of oyer and terminer, 
where they exist, are courts of criminal jurisdiction ; 
police courts are often established in cities with juris- 
diction to try the lower criminal offences ; large cities 
generally have additional courts. 

10. Elections and Terms — Judges are sometimes 
elected by the people, sometimes by the legislature, 
and sometimes appointed by the governor. The terms 
of office vary, being generally six to ten years in the 
higher courts, while justices of the peace are elected or 
appointed every one or two years. In a few States 
(in New England) the judges of the highest court hold 
office for life, or until seventy years of age. Like 
legislative and executive officers, they receive salaries 
fixed by law. 

CHAPTER XX 

LEGAL PEOCEEDINGS 

a. Impeachment 

1. Impeachment — A complaint against the officer 
having been brought formally before the lower house of 
the legislature, it votes whether he shall be impeached 
or not, and if it is decided that there are sufficient 
grounds for the charge, articles of impeachment are 
prepared and delivered to the upper house, and a com- 
mittee of managers is selected from the members of 
the lower house to conduct the prosecution. 

2. Trial — The upper house (senate) then convenes 



JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 83 

as a court, the accused person is summoned to answer 
the charge, and a time is fixed for the trial. The 
trial is conducted in much the same way as a trial in 
other courts, and at the close the senate votes upon his 
guilt, a two-thirds vote being generally required to 
convict. If convicted, the court may remove him from 
office, or disqualify him to hold any office in the State, 
for a time, or for life; or may both remove and dis- 
qualify him. This court can pronounce no other sen- 
tence. But if the act committed is a crime, the offender 
may also be indicted, tried, and punished in a court of 
justice. 

b. Proceedings in Ordinary Civil Cases 

3. Parties — In both civil and criminal cases the 
party ^uing is called the plomiMff (i.e., the one com- 
plaining), and the party sued the defendant (/.<., the 
one defending himself).* 

We will now give a sketch of the ordinary steps in 
a civil action in their order. 

4. Summons — Except in the lowest courts, all the 
proceedings in a lawsuit are taken by means of written 
papers. This is that they may be preserved. The 
first paper is ordinarily a summons. This is a writ 
issued by the court at the instance of the plain tiff, and 

*In a criminal case the State is the plaintiff, and the accused the 
defendant. The State — i.e., the whole people — are the ones injured 
by a crime. For example, in New York State the title of a criminal 
case is "The People of the State of New York against John Smith.'' 
Also, the person against whom the offence is committed has his civil 
remedy, a suit for damages, against the offender. So that in the 
case of a criminal offence (for instance, assault and battery) the 
injured party can sue the offender for damages, and the State can 
punish him at the same time. 



84 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

served upon the defendant, summoning him to appear 
in court. Generally this appearance is made not by 
coming into court in person, but by the defendant's 
attorney * filing a notice in the clerk's office. If he 
does not appear within a certain time, the plaintiff 
may take judgment and issue execution immediately. 
(See page 86.) 

5. Pleadings — If the defendant appears, the plaintiff 
is then required to file or serve his declaration or com- 
plaint^ setting forth what he claims, and the facts on 
which he bases the claim. The defendant then files or 
serves his plea, or answer, or demurrer, \ setting forth 
his defence; that is, the reasons why he thinks he 
should not be compelled to do what the plaintiff de- 
mands. These papers are called the pleadings. Some- 
times other papers are necessary. If the pleadings 
agree as to the facts, the matter is then presented to 
the court, and it makes its decision, without — what is 
popularly called — a trial. But if the pleadings do not 
agree as to the facts — if, for instance, the plea denies 
any fact the declaration sets out — this dispute must be 
settled by a trial. 

6. Jury — Trials may be had before the court alone, 
but in many cases either party may claim the right to 
have disputed facts decided by a jury.% In the higher 
courts a jury consists of twelve men ; in justices' 
courts, of six. At every term of court (except in jus- 

* In this connection an attorney, or counsel, is a lawyer who con- 
ducts a lawsuit for a person. In a broader sense, attorney often 
means an agent to transact any business. 

f These words have different meanings, unnecessary to state here. 

% So important is this right considered that it is guaranteed to 
every one, in certain cases, by most of the State constitutions. It was 
derived from England, where it has been enjoyed many centuries. 



JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT $5 

tices' courts) a number of men residing in the county 
are summoned to attend court to serve ;>s jurors dur- 
ing the term, which lasts one or two weeks. From 
these the jury in each particular case is chosen by 
lot. 

7. Trial — As soon as the pleadings are filed or 
served either party may summon the other to trial. 
If either party does not appear at the trial, the other 
may have judgment against him. If the witnesses are 
unwilling to come, a subpoena (pronounced vwppend) 
may be issued to them. This is a writ from the court 
commanding them to attend, under heavy penalties if 
they do not. A judge always presides at the trial, and 
decides whether the evidence offered by either side is 
proper to be admitted in the case. The usual course 
of proceeding is as follows : The plaintiffs counsel opens 
the trial by briefly stating what the ease is, and then 
examines such witnesses as he chooses, the defendant's 
counsel having the right to cross-examine each one, if 
he thinks the testimony rieeds to be made clearer ; this 
examination and cross-examination is made by the 
counsel asking questions which the witness must an- 
swer, and the witness is not allowed to do anything 
but answer the questions put him ; after the plaintiff 
has presented all his witnesses, the defendant's counsel, 
in turn, briefly states what his defence is, and examines 
his witnesses, the other side cross-examining each one 
if he desires ; the defendant's counsel then makes an 
argument upon the case, and the plaintiff's counsel 
closes with his argument. This ends the trial if it is 
before the court alone. But if it is before a jury, the 
judge delivers a charge to the jury, giving them a 
summary of the evidence on both sides and pointing 



S6 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

out to them the points they are to decide. The jury 
then retire, and deliberate in secret. 

8. Verdict — If the jury cannot agree, they are dis- 
charged, and another trial may be had; but if they 
agree, they return to court and announce their verdict. 
This word is from the Latin verum, true, and dictum, 
saying. In most States all the members of a jury 
must agree before a verdict can be rendered. 

9. Judgment — After a verdict, or decision of a case 
by the court, formal judgment is entered (i.e., filed or 
recorded), and the successful party may add as a part 
of it what are called costs. These are certain sums of 
money allowed to him to compensate for his expenses. 
It is considered just that the one who is decided to be 
in the wrong should pay all the expense. 

10. Appeal — If the defeated party thinks justice 
has not been done, he may appeal to the next higher 
court. This court does not try the case over again, 
but simply examines all that was done in the lower 
court to see if any error was committed. If there was 
none, it affirms the judgment; but if any — even a 
slight— error was committed, it reverses the judgment 
and grants a new trial, which is conducted in the same 
way as the first. In many cases, if either party is 
dissatisfied with the decision of the higher court he 
may appeal to a still higher one, which, in turn, affirms 
or reverses. In this way a single case may have three 
or four trials, and five or six appeals, though that is 
very unusual. Small cases cannot generally be appealed 
to the highest court. 

11. Execution against Property — After judgment 
is obtained against one, if he does not pay it, a writ 
called an execution against the property may be issued 



JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 87 

to the sheriff. This commands him to seize the debtor's 
property and sell it until he has sold enough to satisfy 
(i.e., pay) the judgment. Certain articles, such as house- 
hold goods and clothing, cannot be sold by the sheriff. 

12. Execution against the Person — Formerly, in 
addition to the execution against property, an execution 
against the person could be issued in all cases. This 
commanded the sheriff to put the debtor in jail until 
he paid the judgment. But now this extreme remedy 
is abolished, except in cases where the judgment is 
obtained for some act implying moral turpitude, such 
as libel, assault, fraud, etc. In cases of ordinary debt, 
such as for goods sold, money borrowed, etc., this 
execution cannot be had. 

c. Proceedings in Criminal Ca$es 

13. Indictment * — It is usual for State constitutions 
to contain provisions requiring that before one can be 
tried for a criminal offence (except a petty one) he must 
be indicted by a grand jury. A grand j>/ry is a body 
of citizens (usually twenty-three) summoned in every 
county several times during the year, to inquire what 
crimes have been committed in the county. An indict- 
ment is a formal accusation made by a grand jury 
against a person that he has committed a crime. The 
process of indictment is as follows : Some one, usually 
the district attorney, brings the fact of a crime to their 
notice ; the jury then summon the witnesses f named 
and examine them ; if twelve of the jurors vote that 
there is sufficient cause for putting him on trial, the 

* Pronounced inditement. 

\ No witnesses in favor of the accused are examined by the grand 
jury- 



88 STATE GOVERNMENTS 

indictment is drawn up by the district attorney, en 
dorsed " a true bill " by the foreman of the grand jury, 
and then sent to the court. These proceedings are 
kept secret, in order to prevent the offender's escape. 

14. Arrest and Bail — A warrant may then be issued 
for the arrest of the accused. If arrested, he may give 
bail, except in cases of crimes punishable by death, like 
murder. Giving bail consists of giving a bond, by 
which the bondsmen agree to pay the State a certain 
sum of money if the prisoner does not appear when he 
is wanted. The prisoner is then released until his trial. 
He is then supposed to be in the custody of his bonds- 
men, and they can arrest him at any time. 

15. Examination — But often it is feared that if an 
indictment is awaited the offender may escape. In 
such case a complaint is sworn to before a justice of 
the peace, or other magistrate, and he issues a war- 
rant. When the arrest is made the accused is brought 
before him, and he makes a short examination of the 
case. If the evidence is such that he thinks the accused 
should be tried, he commits him to prison "to await the 
action of the grand jury, or if the case be not indicta- 
ble, to be tried at the next court. He may then give 
bail. 

16. Habeas Corpus * — If the prisoner thinks that 

* This is the most famous writ in the law. It applies to all cases 
where one person is unlawfully restrained by another, as well as to 
persons charged with criminal offences. It is often used by a father 
to gain possession of his child which has been unlawfully taken from 
him. So important is it considered that State constitutions often 
provide that the right of having the writ shall not be suspended by 
the legislature except in time of rebellion or invasion. It protects 
the right of personal liberty by causing the ground of arrest or 
restraint to be examined by a competent judge. 



JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 89 

his arrest is unlawful, he, or any one in his interest, 
may apply to any judge of a higher court for a writ of 
habeas corpus. This commands the sheriff, or whoever 
has him in custody, to bring him before the judge. 
The case is not tried then, but the judge simply exam- 
ines the case to see whether the arrest is lawful ; that 
is, whether any crime is charged, or whether there is 
any proper complaint. If he decides that the prisoner 
is lawfully held, he remands him to prison ; if not, he 
orders him released. 

17. Trial — Due notice being given to the prisoner, 
and a counsel to conduct his case being furnished him 
by the State, if he has none, lie is brought to trial, 
and, except in petty cases, lias the constitutional right 
to be tried by a jury. lie is first called upon to plead 
to the indictment (i.e., answer it), and he may plead 
"guilty" or " not guilty." This is called arraignment. 
If he pleads " guilty," he is immediately sentenced; 
if "not guilty," the trial proceeds. The course of 
the trial is the same as in civil cases: the opening 
addresses; examination and cross-examination of the 
witnesses on each side ; the arguments of counsel ; 
the charge ; and the verdict (see page 86). After ver- 
dict he is discharged or sentenced, according as he is 
found innocent or guilty. 

d. Other Proceedings 

18. In Probate Courts — Here the proceedings, 
though somewhat different, bear a resemblance to 
those in other courts. Generally there is no contest ; 
but when there is the court proceeds in much the same 
way as other courts, but without a jury. 

19. Special Proceedings — The proceedings already 



90 REVIEW QUESTIONS 

described do not embrace all the varieties. Courts are 
applied to for a great many objects, which cannot be 
enumerated here, and the proceedings taken differ in 
different classes of cases. But in all legal proceedings 
the object is to bring all the parties interested before 
the court, so that it may learn what all claim, and give 
each one a chance to disprove misstatements made by 
any one else. 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 

General Principles of Government 

Necessity for Society and Government 

1. Why is civil society necessary to mankind ? 

2. From what does the right of private property come ? 

3. What is law ? Why necessary ? 

4. Why is government necessary ? 



Classification of Bights and Law 

5. What is a right ? 

6. What are political rights ? In what act does a man exercise 

them ? 

7. Name the different classes of civil rights. 

8. 'To what class do religious rights belong ? 

9. What is the difference between the moral law and the law of 

nature ? 
10. What is the difference between the moral law and municipal 
law ? Which is the broader ? Why ? 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 91 



Forms of Government 

11. Name and define the three fundamental forms of government. 

12. What is a despotism ? 

13. To what form of government does England belong ? Is it abso- 

lute or limited ? 

14. Explain the difference between a Republic and a Pure Democ- 

racy . 

15. To which form does the United States Government belong ? To 

which do the State Governments ? Why ? 



State Governments 

Constitution: Election: Departments 

1. What is a constitution in this country ? How many are there 

here now ? 

2. How are constitutions framed ? By whom, and bow, adopted ? 

3. Name the usual qualifications of voter.-, as to age, sex, residence. 

property, character, and color. 

4. Describe the manner of conducting an election. 

5. What is registration ? 

6. What is the difference between a majority and a plurality? 

Which, usually, is necessary to elect a person ? 

7. How many departments of government are there? Give the 

name and duties of each. Why are they kept distinct ? 

Legislative Department 

8. Name the two branches of the legislature. Which is the larger 

house ? Which the more select ? 

9. Are legislators elected or appointed ? 

10. How often do legislatures meet? What does organization con- 

sist of ? 

11. What is a quorum ? How many usually constitute it (i.e., what 

proportion) ? 

12. Are the proceedings of legislatures open or secret ? 

13. Describe the usual method of enacting laws. 

14. What are the purpose and use of committees ? 

15. What is a veto ? Its effect ? 

16. Is a law valid which is passed with all the formalities which the 

constitution prescribes, but not according to the rules of the 
legislature ? 

Executive Department 

17. Who is the chief executive officer of a State ? How does he differ 

from a king ? 

18. Name his principal powers. 



92 REVIEW QUESTIONS 

19. Name the other high executive State officers, and their duties. 

20. What are the territorial divisions of a State ? Their purpose ? 

21. Which is the more important political division (county or town) 

in the Southern Stales ? In New England ? 

22. What is a municipal corporation ? Give some examples. 

23. Name the principal county officers, and their duties. 

24. Which represent the county, and which the State ? 

25. Name the principal town officers, and their duties. 

26. Are officers of the executive department elected or appointed ? 

27. What is a city ? A village ? Why are they incorporated ? 

28. Are inhabitants of cities and villages subject to the general laws 

of the State ? 

29. In what particulars do municipal corporations differ from private? 

The State from other municipal corporations ? 

30. What is a tax ? Its purpose ? 

31. Upon what kind of property are most of the taxes collected ? 

32. What are assessors ? 

33. How is a tax collected when the party will not pay it, in case he 

is taxed for personal property ? How, in case he is taxed for 
land ? 

34. Explain why any government should furnish some education to 

its citizens. Why should we in this country especially ? 

35. How are common schools supported ? 

36. Name some public institutions supported by the State. 

37. How does a railroad or canal company acquire its land ? 

38. Explain the difference between militia and a standing army. 

39. Of what is a State militia composed ? Of what, the United States 

militia ? 

40. Who is the highest officer of the State militia ? 

41. What are volunteer regiments ? 

Judicial Department 

42. What duties does the judicial department perform ? 

43. What is impeachment ? What body tries impeachments ? What 

judgment may it render ? 

44. What is the difference between a civil and a criminal case ? Be- 

tween original and appellate jurisdiction ? 

45. Name the three grades of law courts in a State, with the usual 

jurisdiction of each. About how many courts are there in each 
grade ? 

46. What are the duties of probate courts ? 

47. Describe the progress of an ordinary civil case. Describe the 

course of a trial. 

48. In what civil cases may a defendant be arrested ? 

49. What is an indictment ? A grand jury ? 

50. Describe the progress of an ordinary criminal case. 

51. Who is the plaintiff in a criminal case ? 



DIVISION III 
National Government 

SECTION I.— ITS ORIGIN AND NATURE 

CHAPTER XXI 

GOVERNMENT BEFORE THE REVOLUTION 

1. The United States a Nation — Besides the State 

governments that we have described, there is in this 
country another government, to which all the people 

of all the States are subject, and which, in its own 
sphere, has paramount authority over all the State 
governments. This is the United States Government 
The people of all the original States severally adopted 
another constitution, the United States Constitution. 
This established another and superior government for 
all the people, which is therefore called the National 
Government. In this document the Nation is called 
"The United States of America." To assist the 
reader in understanding the Constitution and govern- 
ment of the United States, we shall first give a sketch 
of the governments which preceded the Revolution, 
and of the principal causes which led to it. 

2. The Colonies — Most of those who study this 
work probably know that our present State and na- 
tional governments were not established by the early 
settlers in this country. The first inhabitants (except 
the Indians) were colonists. A colony is a settlement 



94 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

of persons in a distant place or country, who remain 
subject to the government of the country from which 
they came. At the time of the Revolution there 
existed here thirteen colonies, settled mostly from 
Great Britain, all subject to the British sovereign, but 
independent of each other. 

3. Colonial Governments — The political rights and 
privileges enjoyed by the Colonists as British subjects 
were limited. The people had not then, as now, con- 
stitutions of their own choice. There were colonial 
governments; but they were such as the king was 
pleased to establish, and, generally, might be changed 
at his pleasure. These governments were in form 
somewhat similar to that of our State governments. 
There was what might be called a legislature ; also an 
executive or governor; and there were judges. But 
of the officers of these departments of the govern- 
ment, only the members of the lower branch of the 
legislature were elected by the people. The other 
branch was composed of a small number of men, 
called a council; but they were appointed by the king 
and subject to his control, as was also the governor, 
who had the power of an absolute negative or veto to 
any proposed law. And laws, after having received 
the assent of the governor, had to be sent to England 
and approved by the king before they could go into 
effect. The judges were appointed by the governor. 
The Colonies were also subject to the laws of the 
British Parliament. 

4. Good Laws Denied — Hence we see that the 
colonists had no security for the passage of such laws 
as they wanted. And the consequence was that they 
were often denied good laws. 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 95 

5. Oppressive Laws of Parliament —Not only so; 

many laws enacted by Parliament were very unjust 
and oppressive. The object of these laws was to se- 
cure to Great Britain alone the trade of the Colonies. 
One law declared that no goods should be imported 
by the Colonists but in British vessels ; if brought in 
other vessels, both the goods and vessels were to be 
forfeited to the British Government. Another law 
declared that no iron wares should be manufactured by 
the Colonists, so as to compel them to buy of Great 
Britain. So also the Colonists were permitted to ship 
to foreign markets such products only as British mer- 
chants did not want. They were prohibited from sell- 
ing abroad any wool, yarn, or woollen manufactured 
goods, in order to keep the foreign markets open for 
British wool and manufactures. 

6. Duties — One way taken to compel the Colonies to 
buy of Great Britain alone was to impose heavy duties 
on goods imported from anywhere else. For instance : 
the Colonists traded with the West India islands, some 
of which belonged to Great Britain, some to France, 
and some to Spain. To secure the whole trade to the 
British islands, the British Government imposed high 
duties upon the molasses, sugar, and other articles 
imported into the Colonies from the French and Span- 
ish islands. The people of the Colonies were therefore 
obliged to import the above-mentioned goods from the 
British islands only, while, if there had been no duty, 
they could have obtained them more cheaply from the 
others. 

7. Taxation without Representation — Not satis- 
fied with these acts, Parliament claimed the right to 
tax the Colonies " in all cases whatsoever " ; and an 



96 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

act was passed accordingly, laying duties upon all tea, 
glass, paper, etc., imported into the Colonies ; and the 
money thus collected was put into the British treasury. 
The Colonists petitioned the king and Parliament to 
repeal these obnoxious laws, claiming that under a free 
government there should be no taxation without repre- 
sentation ; that is, that no legislative body had the 
right to tax them, unless they had representatives of 
their own in that body ; and they had none in Parlia- 
ment. These petitions were, however, disregarded. 

8. Result — The Colonies resisted .the payment of 
these unjust taxes. Troops were then sent to compel 
submission, and the Colonists, too, began to arm. 
Finally, the Congress, which was a body of delegates 
from the several Colonies, giving up all hope of relief, 
declared by the Declaration of Independence, on July 
4, 1776, the Colonies to be free and independent States, 
no longer subject to the government of Great Britain. 
This declaration was maintained by a Avar which lasted 
about seven years, when Great Britain gave up the 
contest and acknowledged the independence of the 
States; and the Revolution was accomplished. By 
this declaration the thirteen Colonies became thirteen 
States, independent not only of Great Britain, but 
also, in most respects, of each other. 



CHAPTER XXII 

THE CONFEDERATION 

1. Continental Congress — As early as the year 1774, 
the Colonics united in the plan of a congress, to be 
composed of delegates chosen in all the Colonies, for 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 97 

the purpose of consulting on the common good and of 
adopting measures of resistance to the claims of the 

British Government. The Continental Congress, con- 
vened in September, 1774, conducted the affairs of the 
country until near the close of the war. This body 
was in reality a revolutionary body. It had nothing 
to define or limit its powers. But the people relied 
upon the honor, wisdom, and patriotism of its mem- 
bers, and acquiesced in their acts. 

2. Confederation — But it was seen from the first 
that the Colonies (now States, by the Declaration of 
Independence) ought to be united, and that a central 
government with clearly defined powers must be 
established. "With a view to a permanent union tin 4 
Congress, in November, 1777, agreed upon a frame of 
government, contained in certain articles, called kk Arti- 
cles of Confederation and Perpetual Union between 
the States." These articles were to go into effect 
when they should have received the assent of all the 
States. But as the consent of the last State (Mary- 
land) was not obtained until March, 1781, they went 
into operation only about two years before the close of 
the war. 

3. Defective — As a plan of national government, 
the Confederation was soon found to be very defective. 
The union formed under it was a very imperfect one. 
Having been framed in time of war, it had respect to 
the operations of war rather than to a state of peace. 
Its defects appeared almost as soon as it went into 
effect ; and after the return of peace it was found that 
the union, instead of being strengthened and perpetu- 
ated b} T it, could be preserved only by a radical 
change. 

% 



98 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

4. Weakness — The leading defect of the Confedera- 
tion was its weakness. It consisted merely of a legis- 
lature, called the Congress, and had no executive or 
judicial departments. This body could do little more 
than recommend measures. As it could not legislate 
directly upon persons, its measures were to be carried 
into effect by the States ; but the States were not in 
all cases willing, and some of them did at times refuse 
to do so, and Congress could not compel them. It 
belonged to Congress to determine the number of 
troops and the sums of money necessary to carry on 
the Avar, and to call on each State to raise its share ; 
but Congress could not enforce its demands. It bor- 
rowed money in its own name, but it had no means of 
raising money to pay it. Hence we see that Congress 
was dependent for everything upon the good- will of 
thirteen independent States. It is a wonder that a 
government of such inherent weakness should bring 
the war to a successful issue. It was a sense of danger 
from abroad, rather than any power in the govern- 
ment, that induced a sufficient compliance with the 
ordinances of Congress to achieve the independence 
of the States. 

5. Taxes and Duties — Congress had no power to 
levy taxes or to impose duties. These powers were 
reserved to the States. Even during the war the 
necessary means to carry it on were with difficulty 
collected from the States. But after the war not only 
was money needed for the ordinary expenses of the 
government, but there was a heavy debt to be paid. 
Duties were necessary also to regulate foreign trade, 
but each State imposed such as it saw fit, and there 
was no uniformity. Hence American commerce was 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 99 

fast being destroyed through the want of power in 
the central government to regulate it. 

6. Discord between states — Another of the numer- 
ous troubles which arose from this imperfect union 

was the want of peace and harmony between the 
States. Laws were enacted in some States with a view- 
to their own interests, which operated injuriously 
upon other States. This induced the latter to retal- 
iate, by passing laws partial to themselves and injuri- 
ous to the former. The States soon became disaffected 
toward each other; and their mutual jealousies and 
rivalries and animosities at length became so great as 
to cause fears that some of the 4 States would become 
involved in war among themselves, and that thus the 
union would be broken up. 

7. Attempts at Amendment — In view of these diffi- 
culties, attempts wen 1 made to change the Articles of 
Confederation so as to give the Congress more power, 
especially in the matter of regulating trade; but the 
attempts failed. 

8. Convention of 178G — In January, 17S0>, the leg- 
islature of Virginia proposed a convention of commis- 
sioners from all the States, to take into consideration 
the situation and trade of the United States and the 
necessity of a uniform system of commercial regula- 
tions. A meeting was accordingly held at Annapolis 
in September, 1TSG; but as commissioners from only 
five States* attended, the commissioners deemed it 
unadvisable to proceed to business relating to an object 
in which all the States were concerned ; but they 
united in a report to the several States and to Con- 
gress, in which they recommended the calling of a gen- 

* New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Virginia. 

U*GL 



100 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

oral convention of delegates from all the States, to 
meet in Philadelphia in May, 1787, with a view not 
only to the regulation of commerce, but to such other 
amendments of the Articles of Confederation as were 
necessary to render them " adequate to the exigencies 
of the union." 

9. Convention of 1787 — In pursuance of this rec- 
ommendation, Congress, in February, 1787, passed a 
resolution providing for a convention. All the States 
except Khode Island appointed delegates, who met 
pursuant to appointment and framed the present Con- 
stitution of the United States. They also recom- 
mended it to be laid by Congress before the several 
States, to be by them considered and ratified in con- 
ventions of representatives of the people. 

10. Adoption of Constitution — By this Constitu- 
tion, as soon as the people of nine States ratified it, 
it was to go into effect as to the States so ratif} 7 ing. 
Conventions of the people were accordingly held in all 
the States. The ninth State, New Hampshire, sent its 
ratification to Congress in July, 1788 ; and measures 
were taken by Congress to put the new government 
into operation. North Carolina and Ehode Island, 
the last States to accept the Constitution, did not send 
their ratifications until the year after the government 
was organized. 

CHAPTER XXIII 

THE UNION UNDER THE CONSTITUTION 

1. Confederacy and Nation — The Confederation 
and the Union under the Constitution were each a 
union of the States, but they differed vastly from each 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 101 

other. This difference may be best summed up by 
saying that the first made a Confederacy, the second a 
Nation.* Under the Confederation the States, though 
united as States " in a firm league of friendship with 
each other," yet expressly " retained each its sover- 
eignty, freedom and independence." The people were 
citizens of the several States rather than of a con- 
solidated Nation. Under the Constitution the States 
are no longer sovereign. The Nation is above them, 
and they can do nothing contrary to the Constitution. 
They have in many respects surrendered their sover- 
eignty to the Nation for the good of all. If they 
attempt to withdraw, the Nation can coerce thcni.f 
The people of the States are also citizens of the United 
States, We will give in the following sections the 
chief differences between the Confederation and the 

* A confederacy is a league, or compact between individuals, 
whether persons or nations: a nation, as distinguished from a e>>n- 
federacy, is a people indissolubly bound together as a unit, a single 
people. One is a combination, the other a consolidation. There is 
another sense in which the word nation is often used, that of a people, 
or combination of peoples, having a common central authority, which 
represents them in all relations with foreign nations. The Statrs 
were never known or treated by foreign powers as separate nations, 
and therefore in this sense the whole people were one nation even 
under the Confederation. Further than this, it may be said that 
even before the Constitution the whole people, besides being bound 
together by ties of common parentage and mutual dependence, often 
acted as a consolidated nation, a single sovereignty instead of thirteen. 

f At the time of the late Civil War the Southern States claimed 
that the Nation was but a Confederation, and that therefore they 
could withdraw. This they attempted to do, and set up a govern- 
ment of their own, calling it the "Confederate States of America." 
But — if force of arms can ever settle a logical question — it is now 
settled that our country is not a mere Confederation, but a 
Nation. 



102 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

present Union, which taken together make one a Con« 
federacy and the other a Nation. 

2. Name — The document which established the Con- 
federation professed in its name to make nothing but a 
league between the States, as States, calling itself "Ar- 
ticles of Confederation . . . between the States." 
The Constitution, on the other hand, professes to make 
a union of the people, and not of the States : thus its 
preamble reads, " We, the People of the United States 
. . . do ordain and establish this Constitution." 

3. By Whom Adopted — The Articles of Confedera- 
tion were adopted by the State legislatures, acting for 
the States, as States ; the Constitution was adopted by 
conventions elected by the people in the several States. 
By whom they were framed is of little import. 

4. Power — But the chief difference between the two 
was in their power. We have seen that the Confedera- 
tion had no power except to pass laws, and States and 
individuals could disobey them without fear of punish- 
ment, for it had no executive department to enforce, 
and no judicial department to judge of, its laws. But 
the Constitution gives the National Government all 
necessary powers to enforce obedience to its laws ; a 
complete executive department, with armies and money 
(or the power to raise them) at its command ; and also 
a judicial department free from State control. 

5. State Equality — Again, under the Confederation, 
as in confederacies generally, the States were equal. 
They were entitled to an equal number of delegates 
in the Congress, in which they voted by States, each 
State having one vote ; that is, if a majority of the 
delegates of a State voted in favor of or against a pro- 
posed measure, the vote of the State was so counted ; 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 103 

and a proposition having in its favor a majority of 
the States was carried. Under the Constitution both 
branches of the legislature vote per capita^ the vote of 
each member counting one, and in the lower branch 
the representation is according to population, and thus 
the larger States have more members. The President, 
too, is elected, not by States, but by a majority vote of 
the Electors. (See pages 132, 170.) 

6. National Government — The government of the 
Confederation, although sometimes called the National 
Government, was not really such, nor was it generally 
so regarded, as appears from the proceedings of the 
Convention that framed the Constitution. Early in 
the session of the Convention a resolution was offered, 
declaring " That a National Government ought to be 
established, consisting of a supreme legislative, judi- 
ciary, and executive." This resolution was strongly 
opposed by a large portion of the delegates, because it 
proposed to establish a national government. They 
were in favor of continuing the Confederation with a 
slight enlargement of the powers of Congress, so as to 
give that body the power to lay and collect taxes and 
to regulate commerce. But the friends of a national 
government prevailed ; and history has proved their 
wisdom. 

7. Federal Union — But although the present gov- 
ernment, with its three departments, its powers, and 
its supremacy over the States, is properly a national 
government, yet it is not wholly such, but partly 
national and partly federal ; some of the federal fea- 
tures of the Confederation having been retained in the 
Constitution, as will appear on a further examination 
of this instrument. Hence the Union is still called. 



104: 



NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 



with propriety, the Federal Union, and the govern 
ment the Federal Government. 



CHAPTER XXIV 

CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES 

[Note.— The following is the text of the Constitution and Amendments. It 
should be studied until the pupil can give the subject and substance of each 
paragraph. The titles of the articles and sections form no part of the document, 
but are added here for the purpose of convenience in reference. The large 
numbers at the left are placed there that the paragraphs may be referred to by 
number in the rest of the book.] 



3 



Preamble 

We, the People of the United States, in order to form a 
more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tran- 
quillity, provide for the common defence, promote the general 
welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and 
our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for 
the United States of America. 

ARTICLE 1 

Legislative Department 

Section 1. Division into Two Houses 

1. All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in 
a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a 
Senate and House of Representatives. 

Section 2. House of Representatives 

1. The House of Representatives shall be composed of 
members chosen every second year by the people of the sev- 
eral States ; and the electors in each State shall have the 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 105 

qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous 
branch of the State Legislature. 

2. No person shall be a Representative who shall not have 
attained to the age of twenty-five years, and been seven 
years a citizen of the United States, and who shall not, 
when elected, be an inhabitant of that State in which he 
shall be chosen. 

3. Representatives and dine! (axes shall be apportioned 
among the several States which may be included within this 
Union, according to their respective numbers, which shall be 
determined by adding to the whole number of free persona, 
including those bound to service for a term of years, and 
excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other persons. 
The actual enumeration shall be made within three years 
after the first meeting of the Congress of the United Stat.-. 
and within every subsequent term of ten years, in Mich man- 
ner as they shall by law direct. The number of Representa- 
tives shall not exceed one for every thirty thousand, but each 
State shall have at least one Representative ; and until such 
enumeration shall be made, the State of New Hampshire 
shall be entitled to choose three; Massachusetts, eight; 
Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, one; Connecticut, 
five ; New York, six; New Jersey, four; Pennsylvania, 
eight; Delaware, one; Maryland, sis; Virginia, ten ; North 
Carolina, five ; South Carolina, five ; and Georgia, three. 

4. When vacancies happen in the representation from any 
State, the executive authority thereof shall issue writs of 
election to fill such vacancies. 

5. The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker 
and other officers, and shall have the sole power of impeach- 
ment. 

Section 3. Senate 

1. The Senate of the United States shall be composed of 
two Senators from each State, chosen by the Legislature 



106 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

thereof, for six years ; and each Senator shall have one 
vote. 

2. Immediately after they shall be assembled in conse- 
quence of the first election, they shall be divided, as equally 
as may be, into three classes. The seats of the Senators of 
the first class shall be vacated at the expiration of the sec- 
ond year ; of the second class at the expiration of the fourth 
year ; and of the third class at the expiration of the sixth 
year ; so that one third may be chosen every second year ; 
and if vacancies happen, by resignation or otherwise^ dur- 
ing the recess of the Legislature of any State, the Execu- 
tive thereof may make temporary appointments, until the 
next meeting of the Legislature, which shall then fill such 
vacancies. 

3. No person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained 
to the age of thirty years, and been nine years a citizen of the 
United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhab- 
itant of that State for which he shall be chosen. 

4. The Vice-President of the United States shall be Presi- 
dent of the Senate, but shall have no vote, unless they be 
equally divided. 

5. The Senate shall choose their other officers, and also a 
President pro tempore, in the absence of the Vice-President, 
or when he shall exercise the office of President of the United 
States. 

6. The Senate shall have the sole power to try all impeach- 
ments : when sitting for that purpose, they shall be on oath 
or affirmation. When the President of the United States is 
tried, the Chief-Justice shall preside ; and no person shall be 
convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds of the mem- 
bers present. 

7. Judgment, in cases of impeachment, shall not extend 
further than to removal from office, and disqualification to 
hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit, under 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 107 

the United States ; but the party convicted shall, neverthe- 
less, be liable and subject to indictment, trial, judgment and 
punishment, according to law. 

Section 4. Elections and Meetings of Congress 

1. The times, places, and manner of holding elections for 
Senators and Representatives shall be prescribed in each 
State by the Legislature thereof ; but the Congress may at 
any time, by law, make or alter such regulations, except as 
to the places of choosing Senators. 

2. The Congress shall assemble at least once in every 
year; and such meeting shall be on the first Monday in 
December, unless they shall, by law, appoint a different 
day. 

Section 5. Powers and Duties of the Houses 

1. Each House shall be the judge of the elections, returns, 
and qualifications of its own members ; and a majority of 
each shall constitute a quorum to do business; but a smaller 
number may adjourn from day to day, and may be author- 
ized to compel the attendance of absent members, in such 
manner, and under such penalties, as each House may 
provide. 

2. Each House may determine the rules of its proceedings, 
punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with th.2 
concurrence of two thirds, expel a member. 

3. Each House shall keep a journal of its proceedings, 
and from time to time publish the same, excepting such 
parts as may, in their judgment, require secrecy; and the 
yeas and nays of the members of either House, on any 
question, shall, at the desire of one-fifth of those present, 
be entered on the journal. 

4. Neither House, during the session of Congress, shall, 



108 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than 
three days, nor to any other place than that in which the 
two Houses shall be sitting. 

Section 6. Privileges of and Prohibitions upon 
Members 

1. The Senators and Representatives shall receive a com- 
pensation for their services, to be ascertained by law, and 
paid out of the Treasury of the United States. They shall, 
in all cases except treason, felony, and breach of the peace, 
be privileged from arrest during their attendance at the 
session of their respective Houses, and in going to and 
returning from the same; and for any speech or debate in 
either house, they shall not be questioned in any other 
place. 

2. No Senator or Representative shall, during the time 
for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil office 
under the authority of the United States, which shall have 
been created, or the emoluments whereof shall have been 
increased, during such time; and no person holding any 
office under the United States shall be a member of either 
House during his continuance in office. 

Section 7. Revenue Bills : President's Veto 

1. All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House 
of Representatives; but the Senate may propose, or concur 
with, amendments, as on other bills. 

2. Every bill which shall have passed the House of 
Representatives and the Senate shall, before it become a 
law, be presented to the President of the United States; 
if he approve, he shall sign it; but if not, he shall return 
it, with his objections, to that House in which it shall have 
originated, who shall enter the objections at large on their 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 1()9 

journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If, after such recon- 
sideration, two-thirds of that House shall agree to pass the 
bill, it shall be sent, together with the objections, to the 
other House, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and, 
if approved by two-thirds of that House, it shall become 
a law 1 . But, in all such cases, the votes of both Houses 
shall be determined by yeas and nays, and the names 
of the persons voting for and against the bills shall be 
entered on the journal of each House respectively. If any 
bill shall not be returned by the President within ten days 
(Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to 
him, the same shall be a law, in like manner as if he had 
signed it, unless the Congress, by their adjournment, pre- 
vent its return, in which case it shall not be a law. 

3. Every order, resolution, or vote to which the concurrence 
of the Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary 
(except on a question of adjournment), shall be presented to 
the President of the United States, and before the same shall 
take effect shall be approved by him, or. being disapproved 
by him, shall be repassed by two-thirds of the Senate and 
House of Representatives, according to the rules and limita- 
tions prescribed in the case of a bill. 



Section 8. Legislative Powers of Congress 

The Congress shall have power : 

1. To lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises 
to pay the debts and provide for the common defence and 
general welfare of the United States; but all duties, imposts, 
and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States: 

2. To borrow money on the credit of the United States: 

3. To regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among 
the several States, and with the Indian tribes : 

4. To establish a uniform rule of naturalization, and uni* 



110 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

form laws on the subject of bankruptcies throughout the 
United States: 

5. To coin money; to regulate the value thereof, and of 
foreign coin; and fix the standard of weights and measures: 

6. To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the 
securities and current coin of the United States': 

7. To establish post-offices and post-roads: 

8. To promote the progress of science and useful arts, by 
securing for limited times, to authors and inventors, the 
exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries : 

9. To constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court : 

10. To define and punish piracies and felonies committed 
on the high seas, and offences against the law of nations: 

11. To declare war ; grant letters of marque and reprisal; 
and make rules concerning captures on land and water: 

12. To raise and support armies; but no appropriation of 
money to that use shall be for a longer term than two years: 

13. To provide and maintain a navy: 

14. To make rules for the government and regulation of 
the land and naval forces : 

15. To provide for calling forth the militia to execute the 
laws of the Union, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions: 

16. To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the 
militia, and for governing such part of them as may be em- 
ployed in the service of the United States; reserving to the 
States respectively the appointment of the officers, and the 
authority of training the militia according to the discipline 
prescribed by Congress : 

17. To exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever 
over such district (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, 
by cession of particular States and the acceptance of Congress, 
become the seat of the government of the United States, and 
to exercise like authority over all places purchased by the 
consent of the Legislature of the State in which the same 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 111 

shall be, for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dock- 
yards, and other needful buildings: And 

18. To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper 
for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all 
other powers vested by this Constitution in the government 
of the United States, or in any department or officer thereof. 



Section 9. Prohibitions upon the United States 

1. The migration or importation of such persons as any 
of the States now existing shall think proper to admit, shall 
not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thou- 
sand eight hundred and eight; but a tax or duty may be 
imposed on such importation, not exceeding ten dollars for 
each person. 

2. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be 
suspended unless when, in cases of rebellion or invasion, the 
public safety may require it. 

3. No bill of attainder or ex post facto law shall be passed. 

4. No capitation or other direct, tax shall be laid, unless 
in proportion to the census or enumeration hereinbefore 
directed to be taken. 

5. No tax or duty shall be laid on articles exported from 
any State. No preference shall be given, by any regulation 
of commerce or revenue, to the ports of one State over 
those of another ; nor shall vessels bound to or from one 
State be obliged to enter, clear, or pay duties in another. 

6. No money shall be drawn from the treasury, but in 
consequence of appropriations made by law ; and a regular 
statement and account of the receipts and expenditures of 
all public money shall be published from time to time. 

7. No title of nobility shall be granted by the United 
States; and no person holding any office of profit or trust 
under them shall, without the consent of the Congress, ac- 



112 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

cept of any present, emolument, office, or title of any kind 
whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign State. 

Section 10. Prohibitions upon the States 

1. No State shall enter into any treaty, alliance, or con- 
federation ; grant letters of marque and reprisal ; coin 
money ; emit bills of credit ; make anything but gold and 
silver coin a tender in payment of debts ; pass any bill of 
attainder, ex post facto law, or law impairing the obligation 
of contracts ; or grant any title of nobility. 

2. No State shall, without the consent of the Congress, 
lay any imposts or duties on imports or exports, except 
what may be absolutely necessary for executing its inspec- 
tion laws ; and the net produce of all duties and imposts laid 
by any State on imports or exports, shall be for the use of 
the treasury of the United States ; and all such laws shall 
be subject to the revision and control of the Congress. No 
State shall, without the consent of Congress, lay any duty 
of tonnage, keep troops or ships of war in time of peace, 
enter into any agreement or compact with another State, 
or with a foreign power, or engage in war unless actually 
invaded, or in such imminent danger as will not admit of 
delay. 

ARTICLE II 

Executive Department: The President and Vice- 
President 

Section 1. Term: Election: Qualifications: Salary: 
Oath of Office 

1. The executive power shall be vested in a President of 
the United States of America. He shall hold his office 
during the term of four years, and, together with the Vice- 
President, chosen for the same term, be elected as follows: 



ORIGIN AND NATURE H3 

2. Each Stale shall appoint, in such manner as the Li 
lature thereof may direct, a number of Electors equal to the 
whole number of Senators and Representatives to which the 
State may be entitled in the Congress ; bui no Senator or 
Representative, or person holding an office of trusl or profit 
under the United States, shall be appointed an Elector. 

The following clause has been superseded by Article XII. of the Amend- 
ments : 

3. The Electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote by ballot 
for two persons, of whom one at least shall not be an inhabitant of the 
same State with themselves. And they shall make a lisl of all 
VOted for, and of the number of votes for each, which list they shall mltii 
and certify, and transmit, sealed, to the seat of the government of the 
United States, directed to the President of the Senate. The President of 
the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Repi 
atives, open all the certificates, and the votes shall then be counted. 
person having the greatest number of votes shall be the Pn sident, if such 
number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed, and if 
there be more than one who have such majority, and have an equal num- 
ber of votes, then the House of Representatives shall immediately choose 
by ballot one of them for President ; and if no person have a majority, 
then, from the live highest on the list, the said House shall, in like man- 
ner, choose the President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall 
be taken by Slates, the representation from each State having one vote ; a 
quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or members from two- 
thirds of the States, and a majority of the States shall be necessary to a 
choice. In every case, after the choice of the President, the person having 
the greatest number of votes of the Electors shall be the Vice-President. 
But if there should remain two or more who have equal votes, the Senate 
shall choose from them, by ballot, the Vice-President. 

4. The Congress may determine the time of choosing the 
Electors, and the day on which they shall give their votes, 
which day shall be the same throughout the United States. 

5. No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of 
the United States at the time of the adoption of this Consti- 
tution, shall be eligible to the office of President ; neither 

8 



114 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have 
attained to the age of thirty-five years, and been fourteen 
years a resident within the United States. 

6. In case of the removal of the President from office, or 
of his death, resignation, or inability to discharge the 
powers and duties of the said office, the same shall devolve 
on the Vice-President, and the Congress may, by law, pro- 
vide for the case of removal, death, resignation, or inability, 
both of the President and Vice-President, declaring what 
officer shall then act as President ; and such officer shall 
act accordingly, until the disability be removed, or a Presi- 
dent shall be elected. 

7. The President shall, at stated times, receive for his 
services a compensation, which shall neither be increased 
nor diminished during the period for which he shall have 
been elected ; and he shall not receive, within that period, 
any other emolument from the United States, or any of 
them. 

8. Before he enter on the execution of his office, he shall 
take the following oath or affirmation : 

"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully 
execute the office of President of the United States ; and 
will, to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend 
the Constitution of the United States." 



Section 2. President's Executive Powers 

1. The President shall be commander-in-chief of the army 
and navy of the United States, and of the militia of the 
several States when called into the actual service of the 
United States ; he may require the opinion, in writing, of 
the principal officer in each of the executive Departments, 
upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective 
offices ; and he shall have power to grant reprieves and 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 115 

pardons for offences against the United States, except in 
cases of impeachment. 

2. He shall have power by and with the advice and con- 
sent of the Senate to make treaties, provided two thirds 
of the Senators present concur ; and he shall nominate, and 
by and with the advice and consent of the Senate shall 
appoint, ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, 
judges of the Supreme Court,, and all other officers of the 
United States whose appointments are not herein otherwise 
provided for, and which shall be established by law ; but 
the Congress may, by law, vest the appointment of such 
inferior officers as they think proper, in the President alone, 
in the courts of law, or in the Heads of Departments. 

3. The President shall have power to fill up all vacancies 
that may happen during the recess of the Senate, by grant- 
ing commissions which shall expire at the end of their next 
session. 

Section 3. President's Executive Powers 
(continued) 

1. lie shall from time to time give to the Congress infor- 
mation of the state of the Union ; and recommend to their 
consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and 
expedient. He may, on extraordinary occasions, convene 
both Houses, or either of them ; and in case of disagree- 
ment between them, with respect to the time of adjourn- 
ment, he may adjourn them to such time as he shall think 
proper. He shall receive ambassadors and other public 
ministers. He shall take care that the laws be faithfully 
executed ; and shall commission all the officers of the United 
States. 

Section 4. Impeachment 

1. The President, Vice-President, and all civil officers of 
the United States shall be removed from office on impeach- 



116 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

men I for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high 
crimes and misdemeanors. 



ARTICLE III 

Judicial Department 

Section 1. Courts: Terms of Office 

1. The judicial power of the United States shall be vested 
in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the 
Congress may, from time to time, ordain and establish. The 
judges both of the Supreme and inferior Courts shall hold 
their offices during good behavior ; and shall, at stated times, 
receive for their services a compensation which shall not be 
diminished during their continuance in office. 

Section 2. Jurisdiction 

1. The judicial power shall extend to all cases in law and 
equity arising under this Constitution, the laws of the United 
States and treaties made, or which shall be made, under 
their authority ; to all cases affecting ambassadors, other 
public ministers, and consuls ; to all cases of admiralty and 
maritime jurisdiction ; to controversies to which the United 
States shall be a party, to controversies between two or more 
States ; between a State and citizens of another State ; be- 
tween citizens of different States ; between citizens of the 
same State claiming lands under grants of different States ; 
and between a State, or the citizens thereof, and foreign 
States, citizens, or subjects. 

2. In all cases affecting ambassadors, other public minis- 
ters and consuls, and those in which a State shall be a party, 
t lie Supreme Court shall have original jurisdiction. In all 
the other cases before mentioned, the Supreme Court shall 
have appellate jurisdiction, both as to law and fact, with 



ORIGIN AND NATURE H7 

such exceptions, and under such regulations, as the Congress 
shall make. 
3. The trial of all crimes, except in cases of impeachment, 

shall he by jury; and such trial shall be held in the Slate 
where the said crimes shall have been committed : but when 
not committed within any State, the trial shall he at such 
place or places as flu; Congress may. by law have directed. 

Section 3. Treason 

1. Treason against the United States shall consisl only in 
levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, 
giving them aid and comfort. N<> person shall be convicted 
of treason, unless on the testimony of two witnesses t<» the 
same overt act, or on confession in open court. 

2. The Congress shall have power to declare the punish- 
ment of treason ; but no attainder of treason shall work cor- 
ruption of blood, or forfeiture, except during the life of the 
person attainted. 

ARTICLE IV 

Relations of States 

Section 1. Public Records 

1. Full faith and credit shall be given, in each State, to 
the public acts, records, ami judicial proceedings of every 
other State. And the Congress may, by general laws, pre- 
scribe the manner in which such acts, records, and proceed 
ings shall be proved, and the effect thereof. 

Section 2. Rights in one State of Citizens of 
another 

1. The citizens of each State shall 4-^e entitled to all the 
privileges and immunities of citizens in the several States. 



118 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

2. A person charged in any State with treason, felony, or 
other crime, who shall flee from justice and be found in 
another State, shall, on demand of the executive authority 
of the State from which he fled, be delivered up, to be re- 
moved to the State having jurisdiction of the crime. 

3. No person held to service or labor in one State, under 
the laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence 
of any law or regulation therein, be discharged from such 
service or labor ; but shall be delivered up on claim of the 
party to whom such service or labor may be due. 



Section 3. New States : Territories 

1. New States may be admitted by the Congress into this 
Union ; but no new State shall be formed or erected within 
the jurisdiction of any other State, nor any State be formed 
by the junction of two or more States, or parts of States, 
without the consent of the Legislatures of the States con- 
cerned, as well as of the Congress. 

2. The Congress shall have power to dispose of, and make 
all needful rules and regulations respecting, the territory or 
other property belonging to the United States ; and nothing 
in this Constitution shall be so construed as to prejudice any 
claims of the United States, or of any particular State. . 



Section 4. Protection afforded to States by the 
Nation 

1. The United States shall guarantee to every State in this 
Union a republican form of government ; and shall protect 
each of them against invasion, and on application of the 
Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature can- 
not be convened), against domestic violence. 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 119 

ARTICLE V 

Amendment 

The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall 
deem it necessary, shall propose amendments to this Consti- 
tution, or, on the application of the Legislatures of t wo thirds 
of the several States, shall call a convention for proposing 
amendments ; which, in either case, shall be valid to all 
intents and purposes, as part of this Constitution, when rati- 
fied by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, 
or by conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the 
other mode of ratification may be proposed by the Congress : 
provided, that no amendment which may be made prior to the 
year one thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any man- 
ner affect the first and fourth clauses in the ninth section of 
the first article ; and that no State, without its consent, shall 
be deprived of its equal suffrage in the Senate. 

ARTICLE VI 
National Debts : Supremacy of National Law : Oath 

1. All debts contracted, and engagements entered into, 
before the adoption of this Constitution shall be as valid 
against the United States under this Constitution as under 
the Confederation. 

2. This Constitution, and the laws of the United States 
which shall be made in pursuance thereof, and all treaties 
made or which shall be made under the authority of the 
United States, shall be the supreme law of the land, and the 
judges in every State shall be bound thereby, anything in 
the Constitution or laws of any State to the contrary not- 
withstanding. 

3. The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, 



120 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

and the members of the several Legislatures, and all execu- 
tive and judicial officers, both of the United States and of 
the several States, shall be bound, by oatli or affirmation, to 
support this Constitution; but no religious test shall ever be 
required as a qualification to any office or public trust under 
the United States. 

ARTICLE VII 

Establishment of Constitution 

The ratification of the conventions of nine States shall be 
sufficient for the establishment of this Constitution between 
the States so ratifying the same. 

[Constitution ratified by State?, 1787-1790.] 



AMENDMENTS 

ARTICLE I 

Freedom of Religion, of Speech, and of the Press : 
Right of Petition 

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of 
religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof ; or abridg- 
ing the freedom of speech or of the press ; or the right of the 
people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government 

for a redress of grievances. 

[Adopted 1791.] 

ARTICLE II 

Right to Keep Arms 

A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of 

a free Slate, the right of the people to keep and bear arms 

shall not be infringed. 

[Adopted 1791.] 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 121 

ARTICLE III 

Quartering of Soldiers in Private Hoi 

No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any 
house without the consent of the owner; dot in a time of 
war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law. 

[Adopted 1791.] 

ARTICLE IV 

Search: Warrants 

The right of the people to be secure in (heir persons, 
houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonabli 
and seizures, shall nol be violated; and no wan-ant shall 
issue but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affir- 
mation, and particularly describing the place to be searched 
and the person or things to be seized. 

[Adopted 1791.] 

ARTICLE V 

Criminal Proceedings 

No person shall be held to answer for a capital or otherwise 
infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a 
grand jury, except in eases arising in the land or naval forces, 
or in the militia when in actual service, in time of war or pub- 
lic danger ; nor shall any person be subject, for the same of- 
fence, to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb, nor shall be 
compelled, in any criminal case, to be a witness against him. 
self ; nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due 
process of law ; nor shall private property be taken for public 
use without just compensation. 

[Adopted 1/91.] 



122 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 



ARTICLE VI 

Criminal Proceedings 

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the 
right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury of the 
State and district wherein the crime shall have been com- 
mitted, which district shall have been previously ascertained 
by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the 
accusation ; to be confronted with the witnesses against him ; 
to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his 
favor ; and to have the assistance of counsel for his defence. 

[Adopted 1791.] 

ARTICLE VII 

Jur? Trial in Civil Cases 

In suits at common law, where the value in controversy 

shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall 

be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury shall be otherwise 

re-examined in any court of the United States than according 

to the rules of the common law. 

[Adopted 1791.] 

ARTICLE VIII 

Excessive Punishments - 

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines 
imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. 

[Adopted 1791.] 

ARTICLE IX 

Rights of People not named 

The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights 

shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained 

by the people. 

[Adopted 1791.) 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 123 

ARTICLE X 

Powers reserved to States 

The powers not delegated to the United States, by the 
Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved 
to the States respectively, or to the people. 

[Adopted 1791.J 

ARTICLE XI 

Suits against States 

The judicial power of the United States shall not be con- 
strued to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced 
or prosecuted against one of the United States by citizens 
of another State, or by citizens or subjects of any foreign 

State. 

[Adopted 1798.1 

ARTICLE XII 

Election of President and Vice-President 

1. The Electors shall meet in their respective States and 
vote by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of 
whom at least shall not be an inhabitant of the same State 
with themselves; they shall name in their ballots the per- 
son voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the 
person voted for as Vice-President, and they shall make 
distinct lists of all persons voted for as President, and of all 
persons voted for as Vice-President, and of the number of 
votes for each, which lists they shall sign and certify, and 
transmit, sealed, to the seat of the government of the United 
States, directed to the President of the Senate ; — the Presi- 
dent of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and 
House of Representatives, open all the certificates, and the 



124 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

votes shall then be counted ; — the person having the great- 
est number of votes for President shall be the President, 
if such number be a majority of the whole number of Elec- 
tors appointed; and if no person have such majority, then, 
from the persons having the highest numbers, not exceeding 
three, on the list of those voted for as President, the House 
of Representatives shall choose immediately, by ballot, the 
President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall 
be taken by States, the Representatives from each State 
having one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall consist 
of a member or members from two-thirds of the States, and 
a majority of all the States shall be necessary to a choice. 
And if the House of Representatives shall not choose a 
President whenever the right of choice shall devolve upon 
them, before the fourth day of March next following, then 
the Vice-President shall act as President, as in the case 
of the death or other constitutional disability of the 
President. 

2. The person having the greatest number of votes as 
Vice-President shall be the Vice-President, if such number 
be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed; 
and if no person have a majority, then, from the two 
highest numbers on the list, the Senate shall choose the 
Vice-President ; a quorum for the purpose shall consist 
of two thirds of the whole number of Senators, and a 
majority of the whole number shall be necessary to a 
choice. 

3. But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of 

President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the 

United States. 

[Adopted 1804.] 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 125 

ARTICLE XIII 

Slavery 

Section 1. Abolition of Slavery 

Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a pun- 
ishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly 
convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place 
subject to their jurisdiction. 

Section 2. Power of Congm 

Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appro- 
priate legislation. 
1 [Adopted 1865.] 

ARTICLE XIV 

Civil Rights: Apportionment op Representatives: 
Political Disabilities: Public Debt 

Section 1. Civil Rights 

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and 
subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United 
States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall 
make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges 
or immunities of citizens of the United States ; nor shall any 
State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without 
due process of law, nor deny to any person within its juris- 
diction the equal protection of the laws. 

Section 2. Apportionment of Representatives 

Representatives shall be apportioned among the several 
States according to their respective numbers, counting the 



126 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians 
not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for 
the choice of Electors for President and Vice-President of 
the United States, Representatives in Congress, the execu- 
tive and judicial officers of a State, or the members of the 
Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants 
of such State, being twenty-one years of age, and citizens of 
the United States, or in any way abridged, except for par- 
ticipation in rebellion or other crime, the basis of repre- 
sentation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which 
the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole 
number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such 
State. 

Section 3. Political Disabilities 

No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Con- 
gress, or Elector of President and Vice-President, or hold 
any office, civil or military, under the United States, or 
under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a 
member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or 
as a member of any State Legislature, or as an executive or 
judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of 
the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or 
rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the 
enemies thereof. But Congress may, by a vote of two-thirds 
of each House, remove such disability. 



Section 4. Pnblic Debt 

The validity of the public debt of the United States, 
authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of 
pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection 
or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United 
States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obliga- 



103 



ORIGIN AND NATURE 127 

tion incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against tho 
United States, or any claim for loss or emancipation of any 
slave ; but all such debts, obligations, and claims shall be 
held illegal and void. 

Section 5. Power of Congress 

The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate 

legislation, the provisions of this article. 

[Adopted 1868.] 

ARTICLE XV 

Right of Suffrage 

Section 1. Right of Negro to Vote 

The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not 
be denied or abridged by the United States, or by any State. 
on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitudo. 

Section 2, Power of Congress 

The Congress shall have power to enforce this article b$ 

appropriate legislation. 

[Adopted ItTO/) 



SUBJECT ANALYSIS 



1. Constitution 

r I. Legislative Department ; [Art. I.] 

' I. Its Composition ; 

r 1. Division into Two Houses. [Sec. l.j 
< 2. House of Representatives. [Sec. 2.] 
( 3. Senate. [Sec. 3.] 

II. Legislative Regulations ; 

1. Elections and Meetings. [Sec. 4.] 

2. Powers and Duties. [Sec. 5.] 
(Except law-making powers.) 

3. Privileges of and Prohibitions upon Members. 
[Sec. C] 

III. President's Veto Power. [Sec. 7.] 
IY. Legislative Powers of Congress. 

[Sec. 8.] 
"V. Prohibitions upon the United States. 
[Sec. 9.] 
VI. Prohibitions upon the States.* 
[Sec. 10.] 

II. Executive Department— President and 

Vice-President ; [Art. II.] 

1. (1) Term, (2) Election, (3) Qualifications, (4) Salary, 
(5) Oath. [Sec. 1.] 

2. President's Executive Powers. [Sees. 2 and 3.] 
'■). Subject to Impeachment. [Sec. 4.] 

III. Judicial Department ; [Art. III.] 

f 1. (1) Courts, (2) Term of Office, (3) Salary. [Sec. l.J 
"} 2. Jurisdiction. [Sec. 2.] 
( •>>. Treason. [Sec. 3.] 



but 



Thin logically does not belong to the division "The National Government," 
to M Miscellaneous Provisions," but it is thought best to retain the order of the 



SUBJECT ANALYSIS 129 

I. Relations op States ; [Art. IT.] 

1. Records of one State in another. [Sec. 1.] 

2. Rights in one Stale of Citizens of another. [Sec. 2. J 

3. (1) New States, (2) U. S. Territory. [Sec. 3.] 

4. Protection of States by Nation. [Sec. 4.] 

IT. Amendment. [Art. V.] 

III. (1) National Debt; (2) National Su. 
premacy ; (3) Oath. [Art. A' I. j 

IV. Establishment op Constitution. 

[Art. VII.] 

II. Amendments 

1. Arts. I. -VII I. Prohibitions on Congress as to Personal Rights. 

2. Arts. IX. and X. Rights not named in Constitution. 

3. Art. XL Judicial Jurisdiction. 

4. Art. XII. Election of President and Vice-President. 

5. Art. XIII. Abolition of Slavery. 

C. Art. XIV. (1) Equal Civil Rights, (2) Apportionment of Repre- 
sentatives, (3) Political Disabilities, (4) Public 
Debt. 

7. Art. XV. Right of Suffrage. 

Constitution itself. There are some other cases where the true logical order is not. 
followed in the Constitution. The provisions regarding the choosing of officers and 
impeachment in sections 2 and 3 of Article T. would more properly come in section 
5, as they relate to certain powers of the Houses. That regarding revenue bills in 
section 7 would properly fall in the following section, as it relates to the law-making 
powers of Congress. 



130 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 



SECTION II.— LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 
CHAPTER XXV 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

1. Preamble — The preamble is an important part of 
the Constitution. The object of the Constitution was 
to remedy the defects existing under the Confedera- 
tion, and some of the clauses of the preamble refer to 
those defects (1).* We have seen that the Union then 
was a very imperfect one. Instead of there being 
" domestic tranquillity," the States were continually 
quarrelling. It was impossible to " provide for the 
common defence " of the country against foreign ene- 
mies, or to " promote the general welfare " by broad 
measures, unless there were a strong central govern- 
ment. Had the Constitution not been adopted and 
had the States remained independent, it is not proba- 
ble that the country would have had the unexampled 
prosperity that it has. 

2. CongTess — This is the name of the national legis- 
lative body, and like the State legislatures it is divided 
into two Houses, called the Senate and House of 
Representatives (2). The former represents the States, 
and the latter the people. The members of the 
IIouse,f called Representatives, are elected by the 
people of the States every second year (3). Members 

* These numbers refer to the paragraphs of the Constitution. The 
pupil should turn back to it at each reference. 

t The House of Representatives is frequently called simply the 
M House " when spoken of in connection with the Senate. - 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 131 

of the Congress under the Confederation were ap- 
pointed by the State legislatures, and for one year. 

3. Electors — There was much discussion and differ- 
ence of opinion in the Convention as to what should 
be the qualifications of the voters who should elect the 
Representatives. The qualifications of electors were 
various in the different States. In some of them 
owners of property, or tax-payers, in others freehold- 
ers* only, were voters. In some, only the latter voted 
for the higher officers; in a few, suffrage was almost 
universal. Finally, as a compromise, it was decided 
that the qualifications should be the same in each 
State as those requisite for electors of its lower house, 
as it was presumed no State would object to such a 
rule (3). 

4. Qualifications — A Representative must be 
twenty-five years of age, must have been a citizen 
seven years, and must live in the State from which lie 
is chosen (4). The reasons for this will be readily 
understood. If voters must have certain qualifica- 
tions, surely those who make laws for them should 
have higher ones. (See Chap. Y.) 

5. Number — The Constitution does not limit the 
House to any definite number of Representatives ; it 
only declares that the number shall not exceed one for 
every 30,000 inhabitants. Otherwise it might become 
too large. It requires an enumeration of the inhab- 
itants every ten years ; and the next Congress there- 
after determines the ratio of representation f and the 

* A freeholder is one owning land, either absolutely or during his 
own or another's life. 

f The word ratio signifies rate, or proportion. It here means the 
number or portion of the inhabitants entitled to a Representative. 



132 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

numbei of Representatives, and apportions them among 
the States (5). 

6. Present Number — The first House of Repre- 
sentatives consisted of sixty-five members, and the 
ratio was about one to every 50,000 inhabitants. 
Since then, as the population has increased, Congress 
has increased the ratio, in order that the House might 
not grow too large to transact business ; but in spite of 
that the House has grown, until now (1899) it consists 
of three hundred and fifty-seven members, being about 
one for every 173,900. 

7. Every State Represented- -But it may happen 
(and has happened) that some States have not a popu- 
lation equal to the ratio. In view of this the Constitu- 
tion provides that no State shall lose its representation 
in the House, by declaring that each State shall have 
at least one Representative (5). 

8. Apportionment — With regard to how many Rep- 
resentatives the different States should have, the Con- 
vention found it difficult to agree. In the Congress 
under the Confederation, it will be remembered, the 
States were entitled to an equal number of delegates, 
and each State had one vote. But now it was pro- 
posed to apportion the Representatives according to 
population. On this point there were two causes of 
contention. First : The small States opposed it, be- 
cause it gave them fewer Representatives, and there- 
fore less power in Congress. The large States insisted 
on it, saying that they ought to have greater power 
because they had greater interests. Finally the small 
States yielded with regard to the House of Representa- 
tives. Second: The slaveholding (Southern) States 
claimed that, in reckoning the population for the pur- 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 133 

pose of apportioning Representatives, slaves should 
be included ; the non-slaveholding (Northern) States * 
insisted that only free persons should be included, as 
the slaves could not vote themselves, and it was unjust 
to give the free persons extra votes simply because 
they owned certain property — that being what slaves 
were considered. The controversy on this point rose 
so high, and the parties were for a long time so 
unyielding, that fears were entertained of a sudden 
dissolution of the Convention. 

9. Result — The result was a compromise. The 
Northern States finally consented that three-fifths of 
the slaves [the words "all other persons" in section 2 
(5) mean slaves] should be counted, and the Southern 
States consented that direct taxes should be laid on 
the same basis; so that the Southern States would 
have the larger share of Representatives, but would 
pay the larger share of direct taxes, f But, as it 
resulted, the advantage, contrary to anticipation, was 
almost wholly on the side of the Southern States, for 
very few direct taxes were laid before the late Civil 
War, and thus they obtained the increased represen- 

* Slavery then existed in all the States except Massachusetts ; but 
as there were very few slaves in the Northern States, they are gener- 
ally spoken of as if they were at that time non-slaveholding States. 

f To illustrate this rule by an example : Suppose a State contained 
600,000 free persons and 500,000 slaves. Adding three- fifths of the 
number of slaves (300,000) to the number of free persons gives 
900,000 as the number of the representative population : and the 
State would have been entitled to three Representatives for every 
two that a State which contained 600,000 free inhabitants and no 
slaves would have. So in apportioning taxes according to popula- 
tion, the State in the case we have supposed would have been obliged 
to raise three dollars for every two that it would have been obliged 
to raise if no slaves had been counted. 



134 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

tation without the corresponding increase in taxa 
tion. 

10. Present Rule — The state of things described in 
the last section with regard to apportionment existed 
up to the Civil War. The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amend- 
ments changed the system. Now Representatives are 
apportioned in proportion to the total population, 
whether white or black (100).* 

11. Territories — By an act of Congress, every Ter- 
ritory in which a government has been established is 
entitled to send a delegate to Congress, who has a 
right to take part in the debates of the House, but not 
the right of voting there. 



CHAPTER XXVI 

SENATE 

1. Reasons for Two Houses — In this country and 
in England it is thought best that the legislative body 
should consist of two houses. If there were only one 
house it might pass some very harmful or unjust 
laws, either through undue haste, ignorance, popular 
excitement, or the undue influence of popular but mis- 
taken leaders. But if there were another house, it 
would be improbable that the very same influences 
should exist in both, and thus one house would correct 
the hasty legislation of the other. And if one house 
Avere of a higher grade than the other, composed of 
wiser men, it is seen that its restrictive influence 
would be of the greater value. 

* The number of Indians not taxed is so small that it need not be 
considered. 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 135 

2. Character of Senate — For these reasons the Con- 
stitution has established the Senate, and lias made it a 
body of greater dignity than the House of Representa- 
tives. The causes which make the Senate the more 
select body are four in number: (1) II lias fewer mem- 
bers; (2) they are elected by the State legislatures 
instead of by the people; (3) the term of office is 
longer; and (4) the qualifications are higher. 

3. State Equality — In the Senate the States are 
equal in power, each having two members (s). The 
Convention readily agreed upon dividing Com. 
into two branches; hut, as has been observed, it was 
difficult to settle the mode of representation. The 
delegates from the large States insisted upon a repre- 
sentation in proportion to population, in the Senate as 
well as in the House; and the small States contended 
for equality in both branches. The debate was long 
and animated ; and it became apparent that, as in the 
case of slave representation in the House, there must 
be a compromise. This was at length effected; the 
small States consenting to a proportional representa- 
tion in the House, and the large States to an equal 
representation in the Senate.* Thus while the House 
represents the people, the Senate represents the States, 
and this is one instance in which the federation prin- 
ciple is retained. (See page 103, sec. 7.) 

4. Voting* — In the Congress under the Confedera- 
tion the voting was by States, but the Senate differs 

* It will be noticed that in the Convention which framed the Con- 
stitution there were many opposing interests, and that compromises 
were frequently necessary, each State giving 1 up something. It was 
a spirit of patriotism which caused this, as well as the instinct of 
self-preservation, for without compromise no permanent union could 
have been formed, saving the rights of all. 



136 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

in that respect. There the Senators vote separately, 
the vote of each Senator counting one, as in the 
House ; and a question is decided by the united votes 
of a majority of the members, and not by the vote of 
a majority of the States (8). 

5. Term — The period of six years was also the 
result of a compromise in the Convention (8). The 
terms proposed varied from three to nine years, or 
even longer. One object in making it longer than a 
Representative's term was to obtain a body of men 
wiser and more experienced than the House would 
contain. Where a man is to be elected for a long 
term, greater care will be used in selecting him. A 
second object was to obtain independence of popular 
impulses. The Representatives were to reflect the 
will of the people, and so it was provided that they 
might be often changed: but the Senators were to 
serve as a check upon hasty action by the people's 
representatives, and for this purpose they must feel 
independent of the people to a certain degree. A 
long term tends to give this independence. A third 
object was to check frequent changes in the laws. 
The oftener a legislature is changed the more change- 
able and uncertain will be the laws ; and uncertainty 
and change often do more injury than evil laws. 

6. Gradual Change — Senators are not all elected at 
the same time. One-third go out of office every two 
years (9). In favor of this arrangement are two im- 
portant considerations. First : It secures to the public 
at all times the benefit of the experience of at least 
two-thirds of the body. Whereas, if the terms of all 
the Senators expired at once, their places might be 
supplied mainly by new members without the requi- 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 137 

site knowledge and experience. Second : While a long 
term is intended to guard against the too frequent 
changes in the laws, it may also prevent, for too long 
a time, the amendment or the repeal of bad Laws. 
Such amendment or repeal may be hastened by the 
election of new members in the place of the one-third 
who retire every two years. 

7. Qualifications — Why these are higher than in the 
case of Eepresentatives lias been explained (see sec. 2). 
An additional reason for requiring them to have beeE 
citizens of the United States nine years is found in the 
fact that, with the President, they make treaties with 
foreign nations (62). A Senator should therefore have 
lived here long enough to have become tree from bias 
in favor of his native country. 

CHAPTER XXVII 

GENERAL LEGISLATIVE REGULATIONS* 

1. Choice of Officers — It is considered important in 
legislative bodies that each house should have the 
choice of its own officers, in order that it may have 
proper control of them. A Speaker not responsible 
to the House of Eepresentatives (e.g., if appointed by 
the President) might baffle the will of the entire 
House. One exception to this rule is that the Vice- 
President presides in the Senate. The States follow 
this by having the Lieutenant-Governor preside in the 
State Senate (7, 12). 

* Most of the provisions contained in sections 4, 5, 6, and 7 of 
Article I. will be easily understood, and many of them are similar to 
provisions in the State constitutions. We will speak only of a few 
which require some explanation. 



138 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

2. Impeachment — Impeachment and its trial have 
been described before (see page 82), As in the State 
legislatures, so in Congress, the lower House impeaches 
and the upper House tries. The officers subject to 
impeachment by the national House of Representa- 
tives are the President, Vice-President, and all civil 
officers of the United States (not of any State) (65). 
This means all members of the civil {i.e., not military), 
executive, and judicial departments of the nation. 
Thus neither members of Congress nor of the army 
or navy can be removed in this way. In practice only 
officials of the highest rank are ever impeached. 

3. Meetings of Congress — Congress meets every 
year, in December (16). But as every second year 
the entire House of Representatives and one-third of 
the Senate are elected anew, the two sessions follow- 
ing an election are classed together and called " A 
Congress." The meeting of Congress in December, 
1893, was the first session of the 53d Congress. 

4. Rules — Like State legislatures, each House of 
Congress has its rules, which in most cases are strictly 
followed. A bill is introduced, referred to its appro- 
priate committee, reported by the committee, read, 
debated, and passed (or rejected), in substantially the 
same manner as in State legislatures (see page 44). 
But at any time either House may set aside all its 
rules, and pass laws in any manner it sees fit, provided 
no provision of the Constitution is violated. 

5. Salary — In the Convention there was , much dis- 
cussion as to whether it would be wise to allow salaries 
to members of Congress. On the one hand it was 
said salaries would tempt unworthy men to intrigue 
for an election ; on the other hand, the worthiest men 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 139 

might be shut out through poverty if no compensation 
were allowed. It was decided to allow compensation. 
The amount is fixed by Congress itself (21). 

6. Arrest of Members— Members of Congress 
(except in certain cases) cannot be arrested when 
Congress is in session (21). This is in order that the 
people who elect them may not be deprived of their 
services. 

7. Liberty of Speech — The clause which Bays that 
a member "shall not be questioned in any other 
place" for any speech, means that lie shall not be 
sued, either civilly or criminally, for anything he says 
in debate (21). This is in order that members may 
feel the fullest freedom and independence. 

8. Revenue Bills — These are bills for raising money 
for the government, either by direct or indirect taxa- 
tion. All other laws may originate in either House, 
but these must be passed by the House of Representa- 
tives first (23). The reason for this is that since the 
people pay the taxes, it is appropriate that the Repre- 
sentatives elected directly by them should propose all 
such laws. 

9. Veto — But a bill having passed both Houses is 
not yet a law. It must be presented to the President, 
who is thus a part of the legislative department. 
There are three ways in which a bill, after having 
passed both Houses, may become a law : (1) it may be 
signed by the President ; (2) he may neglect to sign it 
for ten days ; and (3) he may return it to Congress 
Avithin ten days, and each House may pass it a second 
time by a two-thirds vote (24, 25). 



140 NATIONAL GOVERNMMNT 

CHAPTEK XXVIII 

POWERS OF TAXATION 

1. Nature of the National Government — Before 
treating of the several legislative powers we will first 
speak of a certain characteristic of the General Govern- 
ment in which it differs from the States, and which must 
be always kept in mind when considering its law-mak- 
ing powers. The United States Government is a gov- 
ernment of delegated powers ; that is, powers which have 
been delegated to it by the States, or the people of the 
States. It has only such powers as the People have 
given it, in the Constitution. Hence it is called a gov- 
ernment of limited powers. The States, on the other 
hand, existing before the General Government, and 
possessing entire sovereignty, at least in theory, may 
exercise all powers which they have not surrendered 
to the General Government. In other words, their 
powers are unlimited, except so far as they have parted 
with any of their original powers. Therefore, when 
the question arises whether the President or Congress 
have certain powers, we look in the Constitution, and 
if they are not there granted, they do not exist. But 
when the question arises, with regard to a State, 
whether its people have a certain power, we approach 
it from the other side and say they have the power 
unless the United States Constitution has received it. 
Most of the legislative powers of Congress are enu- 
merated in Article I., section 8. The first one grants 
the power to tax (26). 

2. Necessity for the Taxing Power — This is one of 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 141 

the most important powers of government. A gov- 
ernment without the power to raise money hardly 
deserves the name. Without money it would have no 
power to enforce obedience to its laws, for it could not 
pay soldiers or civil officers, and men will not serve 
without pay. We have seen how the Confederation 
tried the experiment and failed.* This was one of its 
errors, corrected in the Constitution. 

3. Maimer of Taxation — Taxes f may be laid by 
the General Government in three ways : (1) upon per- 
sons directly, as poll or property taxes; (2) upon 
goods when they are imported into the country from 
abroad; or (3) upon goods when they are manufactured 
and used here. This clause (26) would also grant the 
power to lay export duties — that is, duties to be paid 

* See page 98. 

f The four words, taxes, duties, imposts, and excises, are not used 
to mean four different things, but only to cover all the usual methods 
of taxation. These words have not fixed meanings. Some of them 
have different meanings in different connections. At times some 
have the same meaning as others. Their most usual meanings when 
used in connection with one another are perhaps these : taxes, direct 
taxes laid on individuals, either as poll taxes, or taxes in proportion to 
property (see Chap. XV. for distinction between direct and indirect 
taxes) ; duties, indirect taxes of all kinds, including taxes on exports, 
imports, and excises ; imposts, duties on imports ; excises, duties 
on goods manufactured and used here. Another word, customs, 
usually means duties on imports and exports, but in this country, 
since there are no export duties, it usually means the same as imposts 

Duties are specific and ad valorem. A specific duty is a specified 
sum of money charged upon every yard, pound, or gallon of any 
commodity. Thus, a duty of ten cents on a pound of tea, or of one 
dollar on a yard of cloth, or of fifty cents on a gallon of wine, is a 
specific duty. Ad valorem is a Latin phrase, signifying according to 
the value. An ad valorem duty is a certain percentage on the value 
or price. 



142 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

on goods when sent from this to foreign countries — 
did not a later provision forbid it (48). 

4. Objects — The objects for which taxes may be laid 
are also enumerated in the same clause (26). Since it 
is the theory of the Constitution that Congress shall 
have power over only those matters which affect the 
whole country, leaving all local matters to the States, 
so no tax can be laid except for some purpose of inter- 
est to all the people of the Nation. But the phrase 
" general welfare " is very broad. 

5. Uniformity — The Constitution is careful to pro- 
vide that no State shall pay more than its just share of 
taxes. There are several provisions regulating this. 
First, direct taxes must be laid in proportion to popu- 
lation (5) ; second, all indirect taxes which may be laid 
(i.e., imposts and excises) must be uniform throughout 
the country (26) ; third, no export duties can be laid 
(48). The reasons for the last provision are that a 
tariff * of export duties which would bear equally on 
the States would be very difficult to make, since they 
do not export the same articles, some exporting cot- 
ton, others grain, and others manufactures, and that it 
would constitute a constant cause of irritation between 
the States. For instance, the Kepresentatives of the 
cotton and grain States might combine and pass a law 
laying very low duties on cotton and grain and high 
ones on manufactures. 

6. Taxes which have been laid — Up to the late 
Civil War very few direct taxes had been laid by the 
National Government. They were then laid for a few 
years, but now (1894) there are none. Some excise 
duties have been and are now laid, chi efly on liquors 

* A tariff means a list of duties laid. 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 143 

and tobacco, articles that are not necessary to the 
people, but are luxuries. During the Civil War the 
excise duties collected were about equal to the cus- 
toms. But from the beginning very many duties on 
imports have been laid, and it is from this source that 
most of the revenue has been raised. 

7. Power to Borrow Money — This is given to Con- 
gress for the reasons already described, which justify 
State debts (page 74, sec. 7) (27). This power was 
exercised during the war until the national debt 
nearly reached the sum of $3,000,000,000. Without 
this power the government would have been almost 
helpless, for its regular income would have been 
wholly inadequate. 

CHAPTER XXIX 

POWER TO REGULATE COMMERCE (28) 

1. Why given to Congress — This was for two rea- 
sons : (1) because it was a matter of general and univer- 
sal interest, and (2) because of the benefits that would 
flow from uniformity. The need of no power was more 
deeply felt under the Confederation than the power to 
regulate foreign trade. AVe thus see that the power to 
lay duties comes from two clauses. One (26) gives 
Congress the power, but only for purposes of revenue. 
If none should be needed for that purpose, or if the 
duties laid for revenue were not sufficient to regulate 
commerce, they might be laid under the other clause 
(28) to any amount. 

2. Nature of Regulation — This regulation is of two 
kinds : (1) the laying of duties on goods imported from 



144 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

abroad, for the purpose of protecting the commercial 
interests of this country ; and (2) making regulations 
which shall tend to render navigation less dangerous. 
The manner and object of regulating commerce by 
means of import duties will be seen if we consider 
the trade of England and America as it was after the 
Revolution. 

3. Retaliatory Duties — England pursued the policy, 
for her own benefit, of laying heavy duties on mer- 
chandise imported there from this country. That 
injured us, and so, in order to compel her to abandon 
the policy, we wished to lay duties on articles sent here 
by the English merchants.* Under the Confederation 
this was attempted, but as each State could lay what 
duties it chose, there was no uniformity, and each 
would try to secure the trade by laying lower duties 
than the rest. So the Constitution gave Congress 
exclusive authority over the whole subject, and retali- 
atory duties were laid. 

4. Protection — Another way in which it was 

* The effect of these duties may not be quite clear : Suppose the 
market value of a bushel of wheat in Great Britain to be $1, and the 
cost of raising the article here and carrying it there to be (together) 
$1. We can then raise it here and sell it there along with the Eng- 
lish producer. If now a duty of 40 cents a bushel is laid upon wheat 
from abroad, we cannot sell it for less than $1.40, and the English 
consumer, instead of buying it with this duty added, will buy of the 
English producer. But, the people of this country being then chiefly 
agricultural, more wheat was produced here than there was a market 
for, and the American farmer was dependent on the foreign markets. 
Being shut out of the English market, the value of our products fell, 
and we suffered loss. It was thought then that if we retaliated and 
laid duties on manufactured articles (of which England sent us a 
great number), and so shut them out, she would be influenced to 
abandon her duties. 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT U5 

thought duties on imports would protect the commer- 
cial interests of the country was in encouraging and 
protecting the manufacturing interests.* This theory 
is called protection, and is the policy which the country 
has followed. High protective duties have been laid 
almost from the beginning, on articles manufactured 
from cotton, wool, and iron. 

5. Free Trade — But it is believed by many that 
protection is a mistaken policy, at least in this country 
at present, and that while it encourages manufactures 
it injures some other interests. The opposing policy is 
called free trade. Its supporters urge that if the yard 
of cloth can be brought here and sold for less than it 
can be made here, the people who pay for it lose by 
shutting it out, and the few manufacturers are the only 
ones who gain.f The British Government now acts 
on the policy of free trade. 

6. Collection of Duties — Certain places on the 
coast are designated by the laws of Congress, called 

* Suppose foreign cloth of a certain quality is sold in this country 
for $2.50 a yard, and cloth of the same quality manufactured here 
cannot be made for less than $3 a yard. There would now be no 
encouragement to any one to engage in the manufacture of such 
cloth, because, in order to sell it, he must reduce the price to that of 
the foreign article, which would subjeci him to a loss of 50 cents a 
yard. Let now a duty of $1 a yard be laid upon the foreign cloth, 
and the price would be $3.50, and preference would be given to the 
domestic article, unless the importer should reduce the price of his 
foreign cloth to $3 ; in which case, it is to be presumed, about an 
equal quantity of each would be consumed, and the duty of $1 a 
yard on the foreign cloth would go into the United States Treasury. 

f The question of free trade or protection belongs to the science of 
Political Economy ; and it is therefore necessary in a work of this 
character only to refer to the matter and not attempt to give, the 
arguments used in support of either policy. 
10 



146 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

ports of entry, and a vessel must first come to one of 
these, where the master delivers a statement of the 
cargo to an officer, appointed by the President, called 
a collector of customs. The cargo is then examined, 
and the duties calculated and paid to the collector. If 
not paid the collector seizes the goods, which are for- 
feited to the government. 

7. Registry — Another regulation of commerce is 
that by which a vessel built and owned in this country 
may be registered on the collector's books as an Amer- 
ican vessel. As such it has certain privileges which 
foreign vessels do not have. A foreign vessel is not 
allowed to engage in the coast trade here. An Amer- 
ican vessel, registered, is in all places entitled to the 
full protection of our government, and if it is taken 
or injured by foreigners in foreign waters, the United 
States Government must demand reparation from the 
government to which they belong. 

8. Clearance and Entry — Every time a vessel (for- 
eign or domestic) leaves a port, what is called a clear- 
ance must be obtained. This is a certificate by the 
collector that all the fees upon the vessel have been 
paid, and the law been complied with in all respects. 
So when a vessel arrives at a port, the master must 
report its arrival to the collector of the port, deliver 
up a statement of its cargo and the clearance he re- 
ceived at the port from which he came. This is called 
entering the vessel.* 

9. Navigation Laws — Coming now to the second 
class of regulations of commerce, Congress has passed 
many laws to render navigation less dangerous. The 

*In the coasting trade between ports of the United States, clear- 
ance and entrv are not required, in general. 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 147 

following are some of the subjects: providing for 
light-houses, buoys, signal stations, and life-saving sta- 
tions along the coast; improving harbors; requiring 
vessels to take licensed pilots when near the coast; 
prescribing how many passengers and what provisions 
shall be carried; quarantine;' 1 '' and many similar ones. 
lO. Commerce with Indians — In granting to Con- 
gress the power to regulate commerce f " with the 
Indian tribes," it was intended to lessen the dangers 
of war. Murders and Avar had been provoked by the 
improper conduct of some of the States. It was be- 
lieved that by a uniform policy difficulties would be 
more likely to be prevented. This was more impor- 
tant then than now, when the number of Indians has 
become so insignificant. 

CHAPTER XXX 

OTnER POWERS RELATING TO TEACE 

1. Citizens and Aliens — The general distinction 
between them is this: citizens are those born in this 
country ; X aliens are those born in a foreign country, 
whether living here or in the foreign country. Both 

* This means a period of time for which vessels are detained before 
entering a port, so that they may be examined to see if there is any 
malignant disease onboard. Quarantines are required by the health 
laws of the States ; and by the laws of Congress vessels are to be 
subject to the health laws of the State at whose ports they arrive. 

f Commerce, in a broad sense, as used in this clause of the Consti- 
tution, means not only trade by sea and land, but all intercourse. 

\ Prior to the Civil War white people alone were citizens in the 
Southern States, but now under the 14th Amendment white and 
black stand on the same basis (99). 

Children take the citizenship of their parents. 



148 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

include men, women, and children. But after living 
here a certain time an alien may become a citizen. 
Aliens have not all the rights of citizens. They usually 
cannot vote (see page 27). * In many States they have 
not full power to own real estate. In general, they 
are considered subjects of the nation from which they 
come, and not of this. 

2. Naturalization — But to deny foreigners the 
rights of citizens after they shall have acquired a fixed 
residence here, and a knowledge of their civil and politi- 
cal duties, would be illiberal and unjust. The process 
by which an alien may become a citizen is called nat- 
uralization. Congress has the power to make a uni- 
form rule (29). The reason for this is that if it were 
left to the States, a person having become naturalized 
in one State might, on removing into another, be de- 
prived of the rights of citizenship until he should have 
been naturalized by the laws of such State. Besides, 
by the Constitution a citizen of any State is entitled 
to the privileges of a citizen in any other State (73). 
Now, after a person is once naturalized, he is a citizen 
of the United States and also of the State in which he 
resides at the time (99). By removing to another he 
becomes a citizen of that. 

3. When Allowed — The laws of Congress prescribe 
that an alien may be naturalized after living in this 
country five years. The first step is to declare on 

* Naturalization and the right to vote are two separate matters, 
which must not be confused. Not all of those who are naturalized 
are given the right to vote (e.g., women and children). Although 
most States do give foreigners the right to vote, when naturalized, 
Btill they need not ; and some States even allow some aliens to vote. 
TLe State regulates voting, the United States naturalization. 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 149 

oath before a court that it is his intention to become a 
citizen. This declaration he may make as soon as he 
arrives, or at any time. After the declaration he must 
wait two years. After that, the court, if satisfied that 
he has resided five years in the United States, ana one 
year in the State in which the court is held, may admit 
him as a citizen. He then, before the court, renounces 
his allegiance to his old country, and swears to support 
the Constitution of the United States. But no alien 
can be compelled to become a citizen against Ins will. 
4. Bankrupt Laws — A bankrupt is an insolvent 
debtor; that is, a person who is unable to pay all his 
just debts. A bankrupt law is a law which, upon an 
insolvent's giving up all his property to his creditors, 
discharges him from the payment of his debts. Such 
laws are designed for the benefit of honest and unfor- 
tunate debtors, who, by having the enjoyment of their 
future earnings secured to them, are encouraged to 
engage anew in industrial pursuits. The reason the 
power was given to Congress to pass such laws (29) 
was that if it were left to the States the object could 
not be accomplished. "No State law could release a 
debtor from debts to a creditor living out of the State, 
nor from debts contracted in another State. The dis- 
similar and conflicting laws of the different States, and 
the entire want of them in others, had caused great 
inconvenience. The most recent national bankrupt 
law was passed in 1898.* 

* Four such laws have been passed by Congress. Two of them 
existed but a year or two. The third was passed in 1807 and lasted 
until 1878. The reason for this short duration was the general senti- 
ment that it allowed many dishonest debtors to procure a release from 
their debts. 



150 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

5. Coinage — The coinage of the money is in every 
country a prerogative of the government. Congress 
has several powers with regard to coinage (30). ISTo 
State can coin money (51). The object here, also, was 
to make uniformity throughout the country. Exercis- 
ing these powers Congress has passed laws by which 
we have a uniform currency throughout the Nation, 
and the convenient decimal system of dollars and 
cents, instead of the awkward system of pounds, shil- 
lings, and pence which existed before the Constitu- 
tion. The value of coin has been regulated in different 
ways : such as, by deciding how much metal (gold or 
silver) shall be put in a given coin, or what domestic 
coins foreign coins shall be equal to. The place where 
money * is coined is called a mint. There are several 
in the country, the principal one being at Philadelphia. 

6. Weights and Measures — For the convenience of 
trade between the States, the weights and measures, 
like the coinage, should be the same in all the States. 
Without such uniformity commerce among the States 
would meet with very great embarrassment. Yet Con- 
gress has never exercised the power given it on this 
subject (30). The States still have the power to adopt 
their own standard. f 

* It must be remembered that coin is not the only money in the 
country. We have now in use United States notes, national-bank 
notes, gold and silver certificates, etc. Only coin and the United 
States notes are legal tender — i.e., if a man wishes to pay a debt he 
must pay with one of those two, if the creditor insists upon it. 

f The weights and measures used throughout the States are, how- 
ever, substantially the same. In 1836 the United States Govern- 
ment sent to each State a full set of weights and measures, as used 
in the Custom House, and these hav- been adopted by the States as 
their standards. 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 151 

7. Post-Office — The power of Congress over the 
mail is one of the most important it has (32).* In 
every nation the government assumes charge of the 
Post-office. It is impossible to conceive all the diffi- 
culties which might attend the exercise of this power 
had it been left to the different States. A uniform 
system of regulations is indispensable to efficiency, 
and could be secured only by placing this power in 
the hands of Congress. 

8. Protection of Authors and Inventors — This 
Congress has power to effect by granting copyrights 
and patents (38). "Science and useful arts" are pro- 
moted by new books and new inventions. But if every 
man had the right to print and sell every book or 
writing, without compensation to the author, there 
would belittle to encourage men of ability to spend, 
as is often done, years of labor in preparing new and 
useful works. Nor would men of genius be likely to 
spend their time and money in inventing and con- 
structing expensive machinery, if others had an equal 
right to make and sell the same. This power is given 
to Congress for the reason that if the States alone 
exercised it, no State could punish infringers beyond 
its own limits. In pursuance of the power here given, 
Congress has enacted the copyright and patent laws. 

9. Copyright — A copyright is the sole right to print 
and sell a book, map, etc. It is obtained by the 
author by following a few simple requirements, the 
chief one of which is the mailing of two copies as 
soon as it is published to the Librarian of Congress. 

* A post-road is a road over which the mail is carried. All rail- 
roads are by law made post-roads, and there are very many others 
besides. 



152 NATIONAL Q0VERN3IENT 

This secures to the author the sole right to print 
and sell his work anywhere in the United States for 
twenty-eight years, at the expiration of which time 
he may have his right continued for fourteen years 
longer. 

10. Patents — A patent is the sole right to make, 
use, or sell a new invention. It is obtained by the 
inventor from the government, but there is much 
more to be done than in the case of a copyright. 
The Commissioner of Patents superintends the grant- 
ing of patents. The Patent Office is a part of the 
Department of the Interior (see page 178). To secure 
his patent the inventor must send to the Commissioner 
of Patents a written description of his invention, with 
drawings and model, and specify the improvement 
which he claims as his own discovery. If the exam- 
iners do not find that the invention had been before 
discovered, a patent is issued therefor, on the payment 
of certain fees. This secures to the inventor the sole 
right to make, sell, or use his invention anywhere in 
the United States for seventeen years.* 

11. Courts — Under the power to establish inferior 
courts (34) Congress has established a system of courts 
which will be described later (see page 180). 

12. Piracy — Congress (and not the States) has power 
to define and punish crimes committed on the high 
seas (35). Piracy is commonly defined to be forcible 

* In the case of both copyrights and patents, the granting of 
them is not proof that the book or invention is new. If any one is 
sued for infringement {i.e., printing the book or using the invention 
without permission from the one holding the copyright or patent) he 
may claim that the book or the invention is not new, and if he 
proves it the court adjudges the copyright or patent to be void. 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 153 

robbery or depredation upon the high seas. But the 
term felony * was not exactly defined by law. eonse- 
quently its meaning was not the same in all the States. 
It was sometimes applied to capital offences only ; at 
other times, to all crimes above misdemeanors. The 
power to define these offences is given to Congress for 
the sake of uniformity, and the power to punish 
them, because the States have no jurisdiction beyond 
their own limits. 

13. Offences against the Law of Nations — Xor 
were these clearly defined. The power to define and 
punish them is given to Congress (36), because our 
citizens are regarded by foreign nations as citizens of 
the United States and not as citizens of their respec- 
tive States; and therefore the General Government 
alone is responsible to foreign nations for injuries 
committed on the high sens by our citizens. 

14. District of Columbia — In 1790 this became the 
seat of government. Over it, and over all the forts, 
arsenals, etc., belonging to the United States, Congress 
has exclusive authority f (42). This authority is 
necessary for the protection of the government. If 
the seat of government were within the jurisdiction 
of a State, Congress and other public officers would 
be dependent on the State authority for protection in 
the discharge of their duties, and the State might 
refuse them protection. { 

* Generally used to denote an offense of a high grade, punishable 
either capitally, or by a term of imprisonment. 

f So also with regard to all territory not included within any 
State (see page 190). 

X This actually happened to the Continental Congress. It was 
once, near the close of the Revolution, treated with insult and abuse 
while sitting at Philadelphia ; and the executive authority of Penn- 
sylvania having failed to afford protection, it adjourned to Prince- 
ton, in the State of New Jersey. 



154 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

15. Implied Powers — It is a general rule that 
where one is granted the power to do a thing, it 
implies that he shall have power to use all the neces- 
sary means to accomplish it. The last clause of sec- 
tion 8 (43) then was unnecessary, for the granting of 
the " foregoing powers " granted also the power " to 
make laws necessary and proper for carrying them 
into execution." * The reason the clause was added 
was to satisfy all possible doubt. Under this right of 
implied powers Congress has passed laws which it has 
been difficult to refer to their proper clauses in the 
Constitution, and which have occasioned much discus- 
sion; such as laws establishing the national banks, 
incorporating railroads, purchasing foreign territory 
(such as Louisiana and Florida), and making the 
United States notes legal tender. In very many cases 
the laws passed under implied powers are wider in 
their scope and more important than those expressly 
authorized. 

16. Other Powers — In other parts of the Constitu- 
tion other legislative powers are given to Congress. 
They will be noticed in their order. 

* For example : The power " to regulate commerce " includes 
the power to cause the construction of breakwaters and light- 
houses, the removal of obstructions from navigable rivers, and the 
improvement of harbors ; for in regulating and facilitating com- 
merce these works and improvements are necessary. So the power 
" to establish post-offices" implies the power to punish persons for 
robbing the maiL 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 155 

CHAPTER XXXI 

POWERS RELATING TO WAB 

1. Declaring War — Congress alone has tin's right 

(36). It is very evident that a single? State ought not 
to be allowed to make Avar. The power to declare it 
is justly given to the National Government, because 
the people of all the States become involved in its 
evils. In monarchical governments this important 
power is exercised by the king, or supreme ruler. But 
here it is entrusted, not to the President, but to the 
representatives of the people, because the people are 
they who have to bear the burdens of war. 

2. Letters of Marque and Reprisal — These are 
commissions issued by a government to private persons 
authorizing them to seize the property of a foreign 
nation or its subjects, as a reparation for some injury.* 
Congress has exclusive power to grant them (36, 51). 
A State should not be permitted to authorize its citi- 
zens to make reprisals; for, although such authority, 
when granted in time of peace, is designed to enable 
the citizens of one country to obtain redress for inju- 
ries committed by those of another, without a resort 

♦They are sometimes oalled simply letters of marque, and are 
often issued in time of war, and sometimes in time of peace. When 
issued, it is generally to the owners or master of some armed vessel, 
which then goes out and captures the vessels and property of the 
foreign nation on the ocean. Such a vessel is called a privateer 
(see page 281). 

This method of obtaining reparation seems more like retaliation. 
But many things are allowed in war which are not justifiable at other 
times. Privateering is not as extensively practised as formerly. 



156 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

to war, the tendency of reprisals is to provoke rather 
than to prevent war ; and when granted in time of 
war it is merely one means of carrying on the war. 
In both cases the National Government alone should 
have the power to grant the commissions, as it alone 
has the power to declare war, because the whole coun- 
try may become involved. The entire subject of war 
is taken away from the States and given to the 
Nation. 

3. Captures — As a part of its power over war, Con- 
gress has power to make rules concerning the property 
captured in time of war. The general practice is to 
distribute the proceeds of the property among the cap- 
tors as a reward for bravery and a stimulus to exer- 
tion. The property captured is called prize. But 
proof must be made in a court of the United States 
that the property was taken from the enemy, before it 
is condemned by the court as a prize. 

4. Army and Navy — So also Congress has power to 
raise, maintain, and make rules for the government of 
an army and navy (37-40).* Under the Confedera- 
tion the Congress could declare war, but could not 
raise or pay a single soldier (see page 98). A govern- 
ment must have an army, or at least the power to raise 
one. Without one it is virtually powerless, for not 
only must a nation be ready to fight foreign foes, but 
also occasions will arise when its supremacy can be 

* The policy of the country nas been to maintain a very small 
army and navy, and undoubtedly much of our prosperity, as com- 
pared with other nations, is due to this. In European nations not 
only do the people have to bear the burden of an immense standing 
army, but in many of them several years of the best part of every 
man's life must be spent in service. 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 157 

maintained against insurrections or rebellions among 
its own subjects in no other way. So also maritime 
nations must have a navy to protect their commerce. 
In ordinary times the United States army and navy 
are filled by voluntary enlistments, but when these do 
not furnish enough men Congress provides for a con- 
scription, called during our late war a draft. By this 
the number needed are chosen by lot from among the 
citizens, and they are compelled to go, or furnish sub- 
stitutes. In order that Congress shall not lose control 
of the army when raised, it is provided that no appro- 
priation shall be made for a longer period than two 
years. It may, however, make as many successive 
appropriations as it sees fit, and they are now made 
every year for such year. 

5. Militia — Congress also can provide for calling 
out the militia (40). It has so provided by delegating 
the power to the President, to be so exercised when he 
thinks the necessity provided for by the Constitution 
has arisen.* 

* Though the President is Commander-in-Chief of the army, navy, 
and militia, Congress still has practical control of all, for before 
they can be paid Congress must raise the money and appropriate it 
(49). In ordinary times this is done every year. 



158 



NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 



EXPRESS POWERS OF CONGRESS 



[Under Art. I. sec. 8.] 



I. ORDINARY PEACE POWERS 
I. Raising Money; 



1. By Levying, 

1. Direct Taxes, 

2. Imposts, or 

3. Excises : 



1. Payment of Debts, 
Z g<o -\ 2. Common Defence, or 
£ g, (3. General Welfare. 



2. By Borrowing. 

II. Commerce, Regulation of; 

1. Foreign, 

2. Among States, and 

3. With Indians. 

III. Naturalization. 
TV. Bankruptcy. 

Y. Coinage; 

f 1. Coining Money, 

( 2. Regulation of Value, of 

j 1. Domestic Coin, and 
( 2. Foreign Coin. 

YI. Weights and Measures, Regulation of. 
YII. Post-Office ; Establishment of 

j 1. Post-Offices, and 

( 2. Post-Roads. 



LEO IS LA Tl YE BE PA R TMENT 



159 



( 1. Define, and 
( 2. Punish. 

.to punish. 



'VIII. Science and Useful Arts, Encourage, 
ment of, by granting 

j 1. Copyrights, and 
I 2. Patents. 

IX. Inferior Courts, Establishment of. 

X. Crimes-, 

1. Piracies, ) 

2. Felonies on High Seas, > to 

3. International Offences, ) 
^ 4. Counterfeiting ; 

j 1. U. S. Securities, and 
I 2. U. S. Coin. 

XL Territory; Exclusive Legislation 
over 

j 1. District of Columbia, and 
| 2. Forts, etc. 

II. POWERS RELATING TO WAR 

fl. Declaration of War. 
II. Letters of Marque, Granting of. 
] III. Captures, Rules concerning. 
IV. Forces; 

1. Army, ) 

2. Navy, j 

3. Militia, to Provide for 



( 1. Raise. 

-] 2. Maintain, and 

( 3. Make Rules for. 



1. Calling out, to 

( 1. Execute Laws, 

•j 2. Suppress Insurrections, or 

( 3. Repel Invasions. 

2. Organizing, ) 

8. Arming, [• at all times. 

4. Disciplining, and ) 

5. Governing, when in U. S. service. 



160 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

CHAPTER XXXII 

PROHIBITIONS ON THE UNITED STATES 

1. Where Found — Section 9 of Article I. names 
certain subjects which Congress is forbidden to legis- 
late upon.* Most of these form exceptions to the 
powers granted in the preceding section. 

2. Slave-Trade — From an early period slaves had 
been imported into the Colonies from Africa. At the 
time when the Constitution was formed, laws prohibit- 
ing the foreign slave-trade had been passed in most of 
the States, but the delegates from a few States in the 
Convention insisted on having the privilege of import- 
ing slaves secured. A majority of the Convention 
were in favor of leaving Congress free to prohibit the 
trade at any time. But as it was doubtful whether 
certain States would in such case accede to the Consti- 
tution, and as it was desirable to bring as many States 
as possible into the Union, it was at length agreed 
that the trade should be left free for twenty years to 
all the States choosing to continue it (44, 79). Once 
more, a compromise^ 

3. Habeas Corpus — The nature of this writ hai 

* It must be remembered that sec. 9 of Art. I. does not apply to 
the States, but only to Congress. The prohibitions upon the States 
are found in sec. 10. For instance, a State legislature is not pro- 
hibited by the United States Constitution from suspending the writ 
of habeas corpus, as far as State offences are concerned. For this 
reason provisions similar to those in sec. 9 are generally found in 
State constitutions, as to habeas corpus, appropriations, statements, 
etc. 

f Congress did, however, in 1808 wholly prohibit the slave-trade. 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 101 

been heretofore explained (see page 88). The presence 
of this clause (45) here shows how important the writ 
was considered. In England its operation had at 
times been suspended for slight and insufficient rea- 
sons- The clause applies only to United States judges. 
They can grant the writ only in cases of violation of 
United States laws (sec page 182). 

4. Bill of Attainder — Attainder in this phrase 
means that forfeiture of property and loss of all civil 
rights (among them, the right to inherit property or 
transmit it to heirs) which a person formerly suffered 
who had been condemned to death for treason or other 
crime. A hill of attainder is an act (*.«., a law) of a 
legislature inflicting this punishment upon sonic par- 
ticular person and condemning him to death, without 
a regular trial in court. Such laws are inconsistent 
with the principles of republican government, and 
are therefore properly prohibited to Congress (46* 
71). 

5. Ex post facto Law — This is a law that makes 
punishable as a crime an act which was not criminal 
when done, or that increases the punishment of a 
crime after it has been committed.* Such laws are 
unjust, and therefore wholly forbidden to Congress 
(46). 

6. Direct Tax — What a direct tax or capitation tax 
is, has been already described (see Chap. XT., sees. 1 
and 11). A prior clause has given the rule of appor- 
tionment of direct taxes (5). For greater security it 
was provided that no direct tax should be laid except 

* If, for example, one should commit murder while the penalty 
was imprisonment for life, and the legislature should then pass a 
law, and apply it to his case, making the penalty death. 
11 



162 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

in that way, counting three-fifths of the slaves (47). 
But now if direct taxes were laid they would be in 
proportion to true population. 

7. Export Duties — These are entirely forbidden to 
Congress (48). The reasons have been given before 
(see page 142, sec. 5). This clause forms an exception 
to the one in sec. 8 (26) which gives the right to lay 
duties. 

8. Equality in Trade — It w r as the aim of the Con- 
stitution to secure to each State freedom and equality 
in trade. For this reason any preference of the ports 
of one State over those of another is forbidden (48).* 

9. Appropriations — An approp?'iation is a law pro- 
viding that a certain sum of money in the treasury 
shall be paid out for a certain purpose. The Consti- 
tution provides that no money shall be drawn out 
except when so appropriated by Congress (49). This 
places the public money beyond the reach or control 
of the Executive or any other officer, and secures it in 
the hands of the representatives of the people. Even 
the President cannot draw his salary unless Congress 
makes the appropriation. In pursuance of this provi- 

* The last part of that clause, referring to entry, etc., may not be 
easily understood. It does not mean that vessels going from one 
State to another shall not be obliged to enter, clear or pay duties (as 
it might be literally construed). There are laws of Congress enforc- 
ing these things in certain cases. It means only that when a vessel 
is bound from a certain State it shall be obliged to clear only in that 
State, and when bound to a certain State it shall be obliged to enter 
or pay duties only in that State. The purpose was to prevent ves 
Bela from being compelled to enter, clear or pay duties at ports from 
which they did not come or io which they were not bound. This 
very hardship had been imposed upon American commerce before 
the Revolution by England, who compelled American vessels sailing 
to a foreign port to first go to England. 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 163 

sion, Congress, at every session, passes laws specifying 
the objects for which money is to be appropriated. 

10. Statements — The clause requiring statements 
of the receipts and expenditures to be published makes 
Congress responsible to the people. Such statements 
are published annually, and short abstracts are pub- 
lished monthly (49). 

11. Titles of Nobility* — Congress is entirely pro- 
hibited from granting these (50). They would tend 
to introduce the distinctions of rank here that exist in 
many other countries, which the Constitution desires 
to prevent. As the Declaration of Independence says, 
"all men are created equal." 

12. Relations of Officers with Foreign Sovereigns 
— Officers of the United States Government are for- 
bidden to receive any present, office, or title from any 
foreign state, unless with the consent of Congress (50). 
This is to guard them against foreign influence. 



CHAPTER XXXIII 

PROHIBITIONS ON THE STATES 

1. Treaties — Section 10 of Article I. enumerates cer- 
tain things which each State is forbidden to do. The 
first one is, to make any treaty, alliance, or confedera- 
ationf (51). Another clause forbids a State to make 
any kind of agreement with another State or with a 
foreign power without the consent of Congress (52). 

* See page 20, sec. 6. 

f For the meaning of treaty see page 172. An alliance is a union 
for some common object. A confederation is a broader word, signi- 
fying a closer union. 



164 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

If the States, separately, were allowed to make trea- 
ties or form alliances with foreign powers, the rights 
and interests of one State might be injured by the 
treaties made by another. As the States united con- 
stitute but one Nation, it is obvious that the power to 
treat with other nations properly belongs to the Gen- 
eral Government. 

2. Letters of Marque — The States are forbidden to 
issue these, as by doing so one State might, for local 
reasons, direct the enmity of a foreign nation against 
the whole Nation, and perhaps involve the whole 
country in war. 

3. Coinage — This is forbidden to each State. One 
object in giving this power to Congress was that the 
coinage might be uniform (see page 1 50), but if each 
State had the power also, this object might not be 
attained. 

4. Bills of Credit — The States are forbidden to 
emit them. Bills of credit are promises to pay cer- 
tain amounts of money, issued for the purpose of be- 
ing used as money. The purpose of the clause was to 
prevent the future occurrence of the evils they had 
already caused.* The United States Treasury notes 
are bills of credit. Bank bills issued by State or 
national banks are not within the prohibition. 

5. Legal Tender — The States are forbidden to 
make anything but gold and silver coin a tender in 
payment of debts. Tender, or, as it is usually called, 
legal tender, means that with which a debt may be 

* Bills of credit, to a vast amount, were issued by the States dur- 
ing 1 lie Revolution, and for some time thereafter. This paper 
money, having no funds set apart to redeem it, became almost worth- 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 165 

paid, by law.* Some of the States had declared their 
irredeemable paper money a lawful tender. But paper 
money and property of all kinds are continually liable 
to fluctuation in value, and might subject those who 
should be compelled to receive it to great inconven- 
ience and loss. Gold and silver are considered more 
stable in their value. 

6. Bill of Attainder — This is forbidden to the 
State legislatures for the same reason that it is forbid- 
den to Congress (see page 161, sec. 4). 

7. Ex post facto Law — The States are forbidden to 
pass such laws, as they are unjust (see page L61,se 

8. Law Impairing the Obligation of Contracts— 
The passage of such a law by any State Legislature is 
forbidden. Laws that would release men from their 
obligations would be contrary to the principles of jus- 
tice, and destroy all security for the rights of property.*)" 

9. Titles of Nobility — The granting of these by 
any State is forbidden, for the same reasons as in the 
case of Congress (see page 163, sec. 11). 

10. Duties — States are forbidden to lay duties on 

* Not all money is legal tender. The legal tender in this country 
now is gold, silver, and U. S. notes (see page 150). The creditor 
may take what he chooses in payment of the debt, but he cannot be 
compelled to take anything but legal tender. 

f As bankrupt laws release debtors from the payment of their 
debts, and consequently impair the obligation of contracts, the ques- 
tion has arisen whether the States have power to pass them. From 
decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States, which is the 
highest judicial authority, it appears that a State may not pass a 
bankrupt law discharging a debtor from the obligation of a contract 
made before such law was passed. But it was not to be considered a 
law impairing the obligation of a contract, if it existed before the 
contract was made ; because the parties, who are presumed to know 
that such law exists, may guard themselves against los& 



166 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

imports or exports (52). The reason that import 
duties are not allowed is that they may be uniform 
throughout the country. This has been explained 
before (page 142). Export duties are generally con- 
sidered impolitic, as tending to discourage the indus- 
tries of a country. 

11. Inspection Duties — The exception allowing a 
State to lay duties necessary to execute its inspection 
laws was deemed proper. Laws are passed by the 
States for the inspection or examination of flour and 
meat in barrels, leather, and sundry other commodi- 
ties in commercial cities, to ascertain their quality and 
quantity, that they may be marked accordingly. By 
this means the States are enabled to improve the 
quality of articles produced by the labor of the coun- 
try, and the articles are better fitted for sale, as the 
purchaser is therefore guarded against deception. A 
small tax is laid upon the goods inspected, to pay for 
their inspection. But, lest the States should carry this 
power so far as to injure other States, these " laws are 
to be subject to the revision and control of Congress." 

12. Tonnage Duties — These are duties laid upon 
vessels; so much per ton.* They are forbidden to 
States (unless with the consent of Congress), as they 
are a means of regulating commerce, which is a sub- 
ject given entirely to Congress. 

13. War — We have seen that war is another subject 
of which Congress is to have complete control (Chap- 
ter XXXI.). For this reason the States are forbid- 
den to keep troops or ships of Avar in time of peace, 
or to engage in war, without the consent of Congress. 

* A vessel's tonnage is not what she weighs, but the number of tons 
of freight she can carry. 



LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 167 

PROHIBITIONS 

[In Art. I., sees. 9 and 10.] 

J. ON THE UNITED STATES 
On Congress ; as to 

I. Taxes ; 

j 1. Export, Duties, 

I 2. Direct taxes, not in proportion tocensus. 

II. Commerce ; 

j 1. Abolition of Slave-Trade prior to 1808, 
( 2. Preference of Ports. 

III. Other Laws ; 

fl. Suspension of Habeas Corpus, 

I 2. Bill of Attainder, 

I 3. Ex post facto Law, 

[4. Titles of Nobility. 

II. On U. S. Officers; 

(1. Paying Money without Appropriation, 

(2. Receiving from Foreign State, any 

1. Present, 

2. Emolument, 

3. Office, or 

.4. Title. 

II. ON THE STATES ; AS TO 

I. Taxes ; 

( 1. Import Duties, 
■j 2. Export Duties, 
( 3. Tonnage Duties. 

II. Agreements with other States or Nations; 

j 1. Treaty, etc., 
/ 2. Any Agreement. 

III. War; 

1. Letters of Marque, 

2. Troops, or War-vessels, 

3. Engaging in War. 

IV. Money; 

( 1. Coinage, 

•p. Bills of Credit, 

( 3. Legal Tender. 

V. Other Laws ; 

f 1. Bill of Attainder, 

2. Ex post facto Law, 

3. Law impairing Contract, 

4. Title of Nobility. 



I ■ 

! 



168 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 



SECTION III.— EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 
CHAPTER XXXIV 

PRESIDENT AND VICE-PRESIDENT: ELECTION, QUALIFICA- 
TIONS, ETC. 

1. Executive — One of the strongest distinctions be- 
tween the present Union and the Confederation is that 
now we have a full and strong executive department, 
while under the Confederation there was none (see 
page 98). 

2. Number — In regard to the organization and 
powers of the executive department there was great 
diversity of opinion in the Constitutional Convention. 
The three principal points discussed were (1) whether 
it should consist of one person as chief, or more ; (2) 
the term; and (3) the mode of election. First: ought 
the chief executive power to be vested in one person, or 
a number of persons ? Laws should be executed with 
promptness and energy. This is more likely to be 
done by one man than by a number. If several were 
associated in the exercise of this power, disagreement 
and discord Avould be likely to happen, and to cause 
frequent and injurious delays. For this reason it was 
decided to have one President (53). 

:i. Term — Second : as to the term. It was argued 
that the term should not be so short as to induce him 
to act more with a view to his re-election than to the 
public good, nor so short that he would not feel some 
independence of the people, and could not carry out 
his system of public policy ; nor so long that he would 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 169 

feel too independent of the people. The term of four 
years was decided upon as the most likely to avoid all 
the objections (53). It commences March 4th next 
after the election. A new Congress is elected and 
begins its term at the same time as each successive 
Presidential term. 

4. Mode of Election — Third: as to the manner of 
electing the President. Several modes were prop 

in the Convention, among them these: by Con- 
by the State legislatures, by the people directly, and 
by Electors chosen for the purpose in sonic way. The 
last was the one adopted (54). The object was two- 
fold : (1) to keep the legislative and executive depart- 
ments distinct,* and (2) to make certain of such a man 
being elected as would be worthy of the high position 
If Congress elected him, it would be practically com- 
bining the two departments; and on the other hand, 
if the people elected him directly, it was thought that 
they might be led into error through popular enthu- 
siasm or misconception, and that at the time of an 
election there would be great excitement ; but if he 
was elected by a body of select men, they would act 
with more deliberation and their judgment would be 
probably correct. And if they were selected for that 
one purpose it was thought they would be better tit ted 
for it than the State legislatures would be. 

5. Election of Electors — The Constitution does not 
prescribe the manner in which the Electors shall be 
appointed or chosen ; this is left to the States. At 
first no uniform mode was adopted by the different 
States, but at present in all the States they are 

* For this reason no Member of Congress nor civil officer can be an 
Elector. 



170 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

selected directly by the people, by general ticket* 
By a law of Congress, the Electors are required 
to be chosen in all the States on the same day, 
which is the Tuesday next after the first Monday of 
November. 

6. Proceedings of Electors — On the second Mon- 
day of January the Electors meet in their respective 
States and vote for President and Vice-President. 
What follows is amply described in the Constitution 
itself (Amend. XII.). In 1804 a change was made in 
the mode of electing the Vice-President. f 

7. Election by the House — On the second Wednes- 
day in February after the election the Electoral votes 
are counted, and if no one has obtained a majority, the 
House and Senate elect the President and Vice-Presi- 
dent respectively. This is described in the Constitu- 
tion and need not be repeated here (95)4 

8. Present Practice — When the Constitution was 
framed it was intended that the Presidential Electors 
should exercise their own personal judgment, and that 
thus the President should be selected by the calm wis- 
dom of a body of men selected for their fitness to 
perform such a duty. But the existence of political 
parties and their action has nullified the plan. Now 
the nominating conventions put forward the candi- 
dates for the Presidency, and the Electors are after- 
ward nominated and voted for entirely with reference 
to those candidates, it being known beforehand which 

* That is, every voter votes for as many men as the State is entitled 
to have Electors. 

f The Constitution itself shows what this was (55, 95). 

% The President has been elected by the House twice ; Jefferson in 
1801, and John Quincy Adams in 1825. 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 171 

one of the candidates they will vote for ; and they 
never exercise their judgment, but simply record the 
vote of the people. It is unfortunate that the original 
plan could not have succeeded, for the present practice 
is open to the objections of an election directly by the 
people, which it is in effect. 

5). Qualifications — These the Constitution specifics 
(57). It will be noted that they arc higher than those 
required for a Senator, because the office is so much 
more important. No length of residence here by a 
foreigner will qualify him. 

10. Vacancy — In case of a vacancy in the office of 
President, the Vice-President becomes the President. :: 
Under the provision of the Constitution (58), Congress 
has enacted that, when there is neither President nor 
Vice-President, a member of the Cabinet shall, in the 
following order, act as President: The Secretary of 
State, Secretary of the Treasury, Secretary of War, 
Attorney-General, Postmaster-General, Secretary of 
the Navy, Secretary of the Interior. 

11. Salary — The President has a salary, its amount 
being fixed by Congress. Congress may increase or 
diminish it, but not so as to affect the President in 
office at the time (59). If Congress could reduce his 
salary at pleasure, he could never afford to be inde- 
pendent of them. On the other hand, if it could be 
increased during his official term, he might be tempted 
to use undue influence to procure a needless increase. 

* The Vice-President has no duties to perform as Executive of the 
Nation. He merely presides in the Senate. In dignity the office of 
President is much higher. 



172 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

CHAPTEE XXXV 

POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE PRESIDENT 

1. Commander-in-Chief — The President is com- 
mander-in-chief of the entire military force of the 
Nation (61). This power must be given into the 
hands of one man. If there were more (even two) 
there might be no firmness or promptitude, qualities 
absolutely necessary to render any army useful. The 
President is the proper person, for he is the Executive 
of the Nation. But the President does not take the 
field himself. The actual operations are conducted by 
his generals under his supervision. 

2. Reprieves and Pardons * — These may be granted 
by the President, but only in cases of convictions by 
the United States courts (61). Over State offences he 
has no jurisdiction. Peculiar cases may arise where, 
although a person is adjudged guilty of a crime, he 
does not deserve the punishment the law provides ; as 
if, for instance, new evidence should arise showing him 
to be innocent. But the pardoning power may be 
greatly abused, and some claim that it would be better 
to take it away altogether. 

3. Treaties — A treaty is an agreement between 
nations, and it may be upon any subject : for peace, 
for war against some third power, concerning com- 
merce, the mail, the return of escaped criminals, or 
any other subject. The power to make them for the 
United States rests with the President. But this is so 

* See page 48, sec. 7. 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 173 

important a duty that it is not intrusted to him alone, 
but two-thirds of the Senate must concur («2).* 

4. Ministers — These are officers sent to a foreign 
nation to represent their own nation there. In this 
country they are appointed by the President, with the 
advice and consent of the Senate. Some are now called 
ambassadors. Our government sends a minister to 
eacli of the civilized and semi-civilized nations of the 
world. They reside abroad and transact any business 
that our government may have witli the government 
of the country where they are. They often negotiate 
treaties, f 

5. Consuls — These the President appoints in the 
same way. Consuls are agents of inferior grade. 
They reside in foreign cities. Their business is to 
aid their respective governments in their commercial 
transactions with the countries in which they reside, 
and to protect the rights, commerce, merchants, and 
seamen of their own nation. Hence much of their 
business is with masters of vessels and with mer- 
chants. 

* Treaties are negotiated ; that is, the provisions or terms are 
arranged and agreed upon, by the agents of the two governments ; 
and a copy of the articles of agreement is sent to eacli government 
to bo ratified. Both governments must ratify, or the treaty fails. 
Treaties are ratified, on the part of our government, by the Presi- 
dent and Senate. This is what is meant by their making treaties. 

f Until recently we have rarely sent ambassadors, but ministers 
plenipotentiary. An ambassador who is intrusted with the ordinary 
business of a minister at a foreign court, and who lives there, is 
called an ambassador in ordinary. An ambassador extraordinary 
is a person sent on a particular occasion, who returns as soon as the 
business on which he was sent is done. He is sometimes called 
envoy ; and when he has power to act as he may deem expedient, he 
is called envoy plenipotentiary ; the latter word signifying full power 



174 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

6. Judges — The President and Senate appoint also 
the judges of the Supreme Court, and of the Circuit 
and District courts. 

7. Other Appointments — Thus we see that the 
President has very important powers of appointment. 
Nor is he under the control of the Senate always, for 
under the Constitution (62) Congress has vested the 
appointment of very many inferior officers in him 
alone, or in the Heads of Departments, who are ap- 
pointed by him and more or less under his influence. 
The advantage is that a President is thus better able 
to carry out his own policy if he has the selection of 
those who shall aid him. But the danger is that if we 
should obtain an ambitious or unprincipled President 
he might use the power of appointment simply to re- 
ward those who would advance his own interests, and 
greatly to the injury of the people.* 

8. Vacancies — But in those cases where the Senate 
must concur in appointments, vacancies will often oc- 
cur while the Senate is not in session. In such cases 
the President may alone make temporary appoint- 
ments (63). Without such a power somewhere, the 
public interests would often suffer serious injury. 
When the Senate acts on appointments it is said to 
go into executive session. 

* For some time past the two political parties have used this power 
to advance their own interests, and when a new party has come into 
power very many of the civil ofTicers have been removed without 
cause in order that members of that party might be appointed in 
their stead. The aim of Civil Service Reform is to establish the cus- 
tom of retaining officers, at least of inferior rank, as long as they do 
their duty, and of appointing those best fitted for the office, no mat- 
ter to which party they belong. This is the policy of England, and 
ought to be of our country. 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 175 

9. Removals — Most of the officers, clerks, etc., in 
the Civil Service * of the United States are appointed 
for no particular term, but hold office until the ap- 
pointing authority removes them. Those appointed 
by the President, or any other officer alone, can be 
removed by him or such officer at any time. With 
regard to those whose appointments the Senate must 
concur in, it was urged at first by many that the con- 
sent of the Senate must also be obtained to the re- 
moval, but this has not been the practice. Up to 1 ^'>7 
the President exercised the power of removal alone in 
all cases. In that year the " tenure of office act " was 
passed, requiring the consent of the Senate to the 
removal of those officers whose appointment they 
must concur in. This, however, was repealed March, 
1887. 

10. Message — At every session the President sends 
to Congress a message, containing recommendations of 
the passage of such measures as he judges expedient 
(64). This, of course, gives little information, but it 
serves to fix the responsibility upon them. 

11. Convening Congress — Besides the regular ses- 
sions each year, Congress may be convened by the 
President when he thinks an extraordinary occasion 
has arisen such as to render it necessary, but at such 
times they only act upon the subjects he lays before 
them. 

12. Reception of Foreign Ministers — This is de- 
volved upon the President as the proper person to repre- 

* The " Civil Service " means the body of persons employed by the 
United States, from the Cabinet down to the lowest clerks in the 
Post-Office, except the army and navy. It includes now perhaps 
100,000 persons. 



170 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

sent the Nation. It is usually a merely formal matter, 
but may be one of great importance. In case a revolu- 
tion has occurred in some foreign country and a new 
minister is sent here, the President in deciding whom 
he will receive must decide whether to recognize the 
new or the old government, and this might involve us 
in war. 

13. Execution of the Laws — This is the most im- 
portant and most comprehensive duty devolved upon 
the President. It calls upon him to see that above 
all things obedience is rendered to all the laws of the 
Union. It is for this purpose that he is made com- 
mander of the army and navy. In 1861 President 
Lincoln would have disregarded this high obligation 
had he refused to take every means to subdue those 
States which had openly revolted from the authority 
of the Nation. 

By comparing this chapter with Chapter XL it will 
be seen how similar the powers and duties of the Pres- 
ident are to those of a State governor ; but those of 
the former are as much more important in their exer- 
cise than those of the latter, as the Nation is greater 
than any State. The State constitutions generally 
have been modelled on the United States Constitution. 



CHAPTER XXXVI 

AUXILIARY EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS 

1. Departments — The great amount and variety of 
the executive business of the Nation require the di- 
vision of the executive department into several subor- 
dinate departments, and the distribution among them 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 177 

of the different kinds of public business. These de- 
partments are nine in number, named as follows: 
(1) Department of State, (2) Department of the Treas- 
ury, (3) Department of the Interior, (4) Department of 
War, (5) Department of the Navy, (6) Department of 
Justice, (7) Post-Office Department, (8) Department 
of Agriculture, and (9) Department of Labor. 

2. Cabinet — At the head of each of these Depart- 
ments is a chief officer. These chief officers, some- 
times called Heads of Departments^ are named re- 
spectively the Secretaries of State, of the Treasury, of 
the Interior, of War, and of the Navy, the Attorney- 
General, Postmaster-General, Secretary of Agricult- 
ure, and Commissioner of Labor, and are appointed by 
the President with the consent of the Senate. The 
first eight of these form the Cabiru f, and act as a coun- 
cil of advice to the President. Owing to this close 
relation between a President and his Cabinet it is 
usual for the Senate to confirm whomever the Presi- 
dent selects for Cabinet officers. 

3. Department of State — This department has 
charge of all the business of the Nation with foreign 
nations. The Secretary of State conducts all our dip- 
lomatic * correspondence, being the official organ of 
communication with the ministers of foreign govern- 
ments sent to this country, and with our ministers 
abroad. lie is also the custodian of the seal, the laws, 
and other official documents of the Nation. 

4. Department of the Treasury — To this belongs 
the charge of the finances of the Xation. It collects 
the revenue from customs and excises, pays the debts 

* Diplomacy is the science of conducting negotiations between 
nations. 

12 



178 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

of the Nation, coins the money, and takes charge of 
all money paid to the government. The vast amount 
of business in this department requires a great number 
of assistants. All the custom-houses, mints, and sub- 
treasuries form part of it. The building devoted to its 
business in Washington is one of the largest there. 

5. Department of the Interior — The chief subjects 
of which this department has charge are the taking of 
the census every ten years (5), the management and 
sale of the public lands, the management of the Indi- 
ans, the payment of pensions •* the granting of patents, 
and education. 

6. Department of War — This department has 
charge of the procuring of supplies and equipment 
and other matters relating to the army. Its duties 
are of course far more important in time of war than 
in peace. The coast signal service belongs to this 
department. 

7. Department of the Navy — This department has 
charge of the navy, the procuring of supplies and 
equipment of vessels of war, etc. 

8. Department of Justice — The duties of the At- 
torney-General and his assistants are to attend to all 
suits in the United States courts in which the United 
States is interested, and to give their opinions in writ- 
ing on legal questions when requested by the President 
or Heads of Departments. 

9. Post-Office Department — This has charge of the 

* A pension is a yearly allowance to a person by the government 
for past services. In this country pensions are granted to those who 
are disabled in war. If a soldier is killed a pension is granted to his 
widow or children. The amount of pensions now paid in this coun- 
try is very large. 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 179 

mail. All post-offices form a part of it. The Post- 
master-General establishes post-offices, provides for 
carrying the mail, and has general charge of all 
matters connected with it. 

10. Department of Agriculture — Here are investi- 
gated matters pertaining to the agricultural interests 
of the country, such as the destruction of injurious 
insects, the eradication of diseases of live-stock, the 
best kinds of seed, of manures, etc., etc. Its publica- 
tions are widely distributed among the farmers, as are 
also large quantities of seeds of the best varieties. 

11. Department of Labor — This is a purely statis- 
tical bureau, and is engaged in the collection and pub- 
lication of facts relating to strikes, cost of production, 
wages, industrial depressions, and other matters bear- 
ing upon labor and industry. 

12. Other Executive Branches — In addition to the 
departments mentioned, various other bureaus and 
commissions have been established, among which are 
the following : 

(1) The Interstate Commerce Com missioti, devoted to 
the regulation of railway rates; (2) the Civil Service 
Commission^ devoted to the examination of those en- 
tering the public service, for whom educational tests 
are imposed; (3) the Fish Commission^ engaged in all 
matters pertaining to the improvement of fisheries in 
the United States; (4) the National Museum, Smith- 
sonian Institution, and Bureau of Ethnology, for the 
maintenance of a museum of natural history at Wash- 
ington, and the study of North American anthro- 
pology ; and (5) the Government Printing Office, 
wherein are printed the annual reports required of 
each Department, the " Congressional Record," or ver 



180 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

hatim reports of the proceedings of Congress, and all 
other statistical and educational reports issued by the 
various branches of the government service. 



SECTION IV.— JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 
CHAPTER XXXVII 

NATIONAL COURTS AND THEIR JURISDICTION 

a. Courts 

1. Necessity for National Judiciary — We now 

come to the third article of the Constitution, provid- 
ing a national judicial department. The Confedera- 
tion had none, and was thus dependent on the States. 
The chief reason why a national judiciary is necessary 
in addition to the State systems is that the State 
judges might be biased in favor of their own State. 
Laws of Congress often bear with greater hardship on 
some States than on others, and public opinion in 
those States upon whom the burden lay might be so 
strong in opposition that no judge elected and sup- 
ported by those people would sustain it. But if the 
judge belonged to a national system, and thus repre- 
sented and was supported by the whole Nation, he 
would have nothing to fear, and thus his decision 
would be more impartial. The experience of the Con- 
federation taught this. 

2. Courts — The judiciary consists of four grades 
of courts: the Bwpreme Gowt,t\iG Circuit Courts of 
AgpeaU, the Circuit Courts, and the District Courts. 
The Supreme Court is the highest court in the land, 
and was established by the Constitution itself (66). 



JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 181 

The others were established by Congress. The Su- 
preme Court consists of nine judges, and its jurisdic- 
tion is almost wholly appellate; that is, cases arc not 
tried in it, but it only hears appeals from the other 
courts, and that only in the most important cases, 
It has original jurisdiction in a few cases. There are 
nine Circuit Courts of Appeals to which cases are ap- 
pealed from the Circuit and District Courts. The 
judges of the Circuit Court of Appeals are Justices of 
the Supreme Court or judges of the Circuit or District 
Courts. Some cases are appealed from the circuit 
Court of Appeals to the Supreme Court. Of the Cir- 
cuit Courts there are nine in the country. There are 
seventy-two District Courts (including the three in the 
Indian Territory). The jurisdiction of all the courts 
is both civil and criminal.* 

3. Court of Claims — No one has any right to sue 
a government. Such a right is inconsistent with sov- 
ereignty. So, in this country, no one has a right to 
sue the people (they are the government), for it is the 
people from whom he gets any right, even the right to 
his own property or his life, and to admit that any one 
had a right to force anything from them would be ad- 
mitting that they were not sovereign. For this rea- 
son no one has a right to sue the United States, or any 
State (94). But Congress has established a court 
called the Court of Claims, in which those having 
claims which they think ought to be paid by the 
United States may bring a suit in the ordinary way, 
in form against the United States, and the court de- 
cides whether they should be paid. If it is decided in 
the claimant's favor it is so reported to Congress, and 
Congress generally will make an appropriation. But 

* For explanation of the terms used in this section see page 79. 



182 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

Congress is free to do as it chooses, and there is no 
way to compel payment. Some States have estab- 
lished similar courts of claims, but though proceeding 
in legal methods, they perform rather the functions of 
legislative committees than courts. 

4. Tenure of Office — By the Constitution the judges 
hold office during good behavior (66). This means 
until removed on impeachment for bad behavior, and 
thus in most cases it means for life. In no other 
department of the general government are offices held 
for so long a term. The purpose is to insure a correct 
and impartial administration of justice by making 
them independent. If they could be displaced at the 
pleasure of the appointing power, or by frequent elec- 
tions, they might be tempted to conform their opin- 
ions and decisions to the wishes of those on whom 
they were dependent for continuance in office. The 
object of the framers of the Constitution was to 
remove them as far as possible from party influence. 

5. Salary — As with the President, so here, Congress, 
though it fixes the salaries of the judges, cannot dimin- 
ish them while in office. .To give Congress power over 
the purse of an officer is to give it power over his will. 
Dependence upon the legislature would be as great an 
evil as dependence upon the appointing power. 

b. Jurisdiction 

6. In General — The jurisdiction of the United States 
courts does not extend to all kinds of cases, but only to 
such as the Constitution specifies, just as Congress has 
power to pass only such laws as the Constitution allows 
it to. The cases enumerated in the Constitution (67) 
in which the national courts have jurisdiction may be 



JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 183 

divided into three general classes: (1) those arising 
under the Constitution, the laws of Congress, and 
treaties; (2) those affecting foreigners; and (3) those 
between different States or the citizens of different 
States.* 

7. Cases arising under United States Laws — Cases 
which arise under the Constitution, laws, or treaties of 
the United States may be those where a person is 
given a right by the Constitution, laws, or treaties 
which he does not have by the laws of his State 
for instance, a right to sue an infringer of a patent 
granted to him), or where he violates a law of Con- 
gress, or treaty (as counterfeiting coin, or doing any- 
thing forbidden by a treaty), or where any question 
arises as to the meaning of the Constitution, laws, or 
treaties of the United States, or as to whether a law of 
Congress is constitutional f or not. In these cases it 
makes no difference whether the parties are citizens of 
the same State or not. The jurisdiction is given to the 
national judiciary for two reasons : (1) in order that in 
the interpretation and enforcement of its own laws it 
may not be dependent on the States, and (2) in order 
that the interpretation may be uniform throughout the 
country. "Were it left to the State courts, some States 

* It will be seen, therefore, that the great majority of cases between 
citizens of the same State must be brought in the State courts. So 
also the great majority of criminal cases are tried in the State 
courts. 

f A law of Congress is unconstitutional (and wholly void) unless 
the Constitution has given Congress the right to pass it (see page 140). 
If, for instance, Congress should pass a usury law (that is, a law reg- 
ulating the interest of money), or a law abolishing capital punish- 
ment, it would be void, because it has not been given these powers by 
the Constitution. 



184 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

might decide that a law meant one thing, and other 
States that it meant another. 

8. Cases affecting Foreigners — The decision of 
these properly belongs to the national courts, for the 
reason that if a foreigner is injured here, the Nation, 
and not the State, is responsible to the foreigner's 
government : therefore the Nation, and not the State, 
should redress the injury. And where the foreigner is 
an ambassador, or other minister, the Supreme Court 
has original jurisdiction of the case (68). This is in 
order to provide as certainly as possible against the 
danger of injustice being done, for it might involve 
the country in a dispute, or even war, with his coun- 
try. All public ministers are treated with the highest 
respect, for this reason. Admiralty jurisdiction* is 
also given to the national courts, for the reason that 
many admiralty cases affect foreigners. Another rea- 
son is that admiralty is a part of the regulation of 
commerce, which we have seen is a subject taken away 
from the States and given entirely to the United 
States. 

9. Cases affecting Different States, or their Citi- 
zens — The third class of cases in which the national 
courts have jurisdiction is where the parties on the 
two sides, plaintiff and defendant, are either two 
different States, or citizens of different States. The 
reason for this jurisdiction is to prevent dissension 
among the States. If the decision of a question which 

* Admiralty jurisdiction is jurisdiction of cases arising on the sea, 
or connected with vessels ; as, for instance, cases of piracy, of col- 
lision on the sea, or claims for repairing a vessel, or contracts to 
cany freight or passengers. No State has any jurisdiction over the 
ocean. 



JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 185 

affected two States were left to the courts of either, 
the controversy instead of being closed would be inten- 
sified The history of the small German States and 
of the States under the Confederation illustrates this. 
But now, there being an impartial arbiter, the United 
States, the States submit to the decision.* 



CHAPTER XXXVIII 

TREASON 

1. Why Defined. — Treason is one of the highest 
crimes that man can commit. Yet, such deep resent- 
ment and alarm does it create among the people. for 
it is an attempt to overthrow the established govern- 
ment, that the tendency always is to see it in acts 
which maybe innocent, and which at least do not 
have such a purpose. For this reason the Constitution 
itself says what shall be considered treason, and what 
proof shall be necessary to establish it (TO). It must 

* It will be noticed that the jurisdiction in the cases mentioned in 
this and the preceding section depends upon the character of the 
persons suing or sued, while in those mentioned in section 7 it de- 
pends upon the character of the case. When the ease is such as to 
give the national courts jurisdiction it makes no difference whether 
the parties are citizens of different States or not, and when they are 
citizens of different States, or one is a foreigner, those courts have 
jurisdiction whether the case is one of those mentioned in section 7 
or not. Not all the cases enumerated in sec. 2 of Art. III. (67) have 
been spoken of separately in the text. It will be a useful exercise 
for the pupil to write down each separate case mentioned there, and 
tell to which one of the three classes described above it belongs, and 
why. But he will be apt to make a mistake as to suits by citizens 
against States, unless he consults Amendment XI. (see page 198). A 
State cannot be sued except by another State. 



186 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

be either making war against the United States, 01 
adhering to its enemies. And it is not sufficient that 
there is an intention or even a conspiracy to do these 
things, though they are highly reprehensible. There 
must be some overt (i.e., open) act, before it is treason. 

2. Proof — The proof required is more than in the 
case of most crimes. Generally one may be convicted, 
even of murder, upon the testimony of one witness 
directly to the commission of the crime, or even with- 
out any direct testimony upon its commission, pro- 
vided the other circumstances proven point toward it. 
But in treason against the United States, no matter 
what circumstances point toward it, there must be 
two witnesses to the same act. 

3. Punishment — Under the authority given by the 
Constitution (71) Congress has declared the punish- 
ment of treason to be death, or, at the discretion of 
the court, imprisonment and fine ; the imprisonment 
to be for not less than five years and the fine not less 
than $10,000. An attainder of treason means here 
judgment by a court. In England formerly, when one 
was adjudged guilty of treason all his property was 
forfeited to the king, and he could neither inherit nor 
transmit property to heirs. This is what is meant by 
corruption of Mood. Thus for a man's treason his 
innocent relatives Avere punished with him. But that 
is not so here. A law of Congress provides that no 
conviction (of any crime against the United States) 
shall work corruption of blood or any forfeiture of 
estate. 

4. The Civil War — In this country there were no 
prosecutions for treason after the War, even of the 
leaders. They were, however, laid under certain polit- 



MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 187 

ical disabilities, but even these have now (1894) been 
almost entirely removed. 

5. Other Crimes — The great majority of crimes, 
such as murder, forgery, theft, etc., lie generally within 
the jurisdiction of the State. The State laws describe 
them, and the State courts punish them. The other 
subjects, beside treason, upon which Congress has au- 
thority to define offences and establish their punish- 
ment, and of which the national courts have criminal 
jurisdiction, are chiefly as follows: All crimes com- 
mitted on the sea, piracy, murder, theft, etc. ; j» rjury 
and other judicial crimes when committed in the 
national courts ; counterfeiting United States notes or 
coin ; forgery of patents or other United Statt 8j>Oj 
robbery of the mail, or other crimes connected with 
the postal service; extortion by a United States offia r ; 
the holding of slaves ; and preventing any one from 
exercising his civil rights, by intdrnddcUdon or other 
means. 

SECTION V.— MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 
CHAPTER XXXIX 

RELATIONS OF STATES 

1. Records — Article IV. of the Constitution contains 
a number of important provisions, most of which 
affect the relations of the States to each other and to 
the General Government. The first one is in regard 
to the effect which the laws, records, and judgments 
of one State shall have in another, and the provision 
is that they shall have full effect everywhere (72). 



188 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

For instance, if a person is sued in New York and 
there is a decision on the merits against him, it is 
decided, once for all, and it may be enforced against 
him wherever he goes. Were it not for this clause 
States might provide that no matter how many times 
a question had been tried, it must be tried over again 
with all the evidence before they would enforce it. 
Congress has prescribed the manner in which public 
acts and records may be proved, and when proven 
they are conclusive as to the things stated in them. 

2. Privileges of Citizens — No State can grant priv- 
ileges to its own citizens, from which the citizens of 
other States are excluded (73). The purpose is to put 
all on an equality everywhere. Without such a pro- 
vision, any State might deny to citizens of other 
States the right to buy and hold real estate, or to 
become voters after living in the State the prescribed 
time, or to enjoy equal privileges in trade or business. 

3. Fugitive Criminals — The officials of one State 
have no power in another State as officials. For 
instance, the police or sheriff of New York City have 
no power to arrest a murderer in Jersey City. But 
the Constitution provides against the escape of crimi- 
nals in this way (74). The Governor of the State 
from which such person has fled, sends a requisition 
to the Governor of the State in which he is found, 
demanding his delivery to the first State. This re- 
quisition is usually complied with, and yet cases have 
occurred in which a Governor has refused to deliver 
up an accused person, and there is no way provided 
to compel him. This seems to have been an oversight 
on the part of the framers of the Constitution. 

4. Fugitive Slaves — By the common law, a slave 



MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 189 

escaping into a non-slaveholding State became free. 
As it was presumed at the time the Constitution was 
framed that other Northern States would follow Mas- 
sachusetts in abolishing slavery, the Southern States 
wanted some provision to enable them to reclaim their 
fugitive slaves. The Northern States, though opposed 
to this, yielded for the sake of unity (75). Escaped 
slaves were, under this provision, returned to the 
South up to 18G1. The clause is of course; obsolete 
now.* 

5. New states — The provision (76) with regard to 
the admission of new States into the Union was deemed 
necessary in view of the large extent of vacant lands 
within the United States, and of the inconvenient size 
of some of the States then existing. The territory 
north-west of the Ohio River had been ceded to the 
General Government by the States claiming the same. 
South of the Ohio River also was a large tract, prin- 
cipally unsettled, within the chartered limits of Yir 
ginia, North Carolina, and Georgia, extending west to 
the Mississippi: These two tracts it was presumed 
would soon become so thickly populated as to require 
separate governments. Since that time vast tracts 
have been acquired from France, Spain, Texas, and 
Mexico. From all these tracts thirty-one new States 
have been formed and admitted into the Union. AV lien 
formed from the territory of the United States the 
consent of Congress only is required, but when formed 
from the territory of another State the consent of that 
State must also be obtained. \ The case of West Vir- 
ginia was exceptional. 

* The words "slave " does not appear in the original Constitution. 
f After the late war Congress declared the Southern States to have 



190 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

6. United States Territory — Congress has complete 
power over the territory not organized into States 
(77). It establishes territorial governments, and these 
carry on all the ordinary governmental duties, but 
they are subject to the control of Congress. The 
clause with regard to the claims of States has no effect 
at the present day. 

7. Protection by United States — The United States 
must always see to it that the State governments are 
republican in form (78). The object is to perpetuate 
republican institutions. If some large State should 
establish a monarchy, it might in time engulf smaller 
ones, and in the end destroy the Constitution. Its 
policy would be in opposition to all republican institu- 
tions. So, if a State is in danger from invasion, or 
insurrection, it may call on the Nation for assistance. 

CHAPTER XL 

AMENDMENT : DEBT I SUPREMACY : OATH I TEST I 
RATIFICATION 

1. Reason for Amendment — Article Y. describes 
the manner in which the Constitution may be amended 
(79). As the best human government is imperfect, and 
as all the future wants and necessities of a people can- 
not be foreseen and provided for, it is obvious that 
every constitution should contain some provision for 
its amendment. 

2. Mode of Amendment — This is described in the 

no lawful governments, and placed them under temporary military 
governments. In time they adopted new constitutions, and were 
readmitted to the Union by Congress. 



MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 191 

Constitution (79). If amendments could be made 
whenever desired by a bare majority of the States, 
the strength and efficiency of the Constitution might 
be greatly impaired by frequent alterations. It is 
therefore wisely provided that a mere proposition to 
amend cannot be made except by a majority of at Least 
two-thirds of Congress, or of the legislatures of at Vast 
two-thirds of the States ; and that such proposition must 
be ratified by a still larger majority (three-fourths) of 
the States. It was thought better to submit occasionally 
to some temporary inconvenience than to indulge in 
frequent amendments. 

3. Public Debt — The clause (80) which adopts the 
prior debts of the country was intended to allay the 
fears of public creditors, who apprehended that a 
change in the government would release the Nation 
from its obligations. But their fears were probably 
groundless, for one purpose in changing the govern- 
ment was to provide a way to pay those debts. 

4. Supremacy — The next clause (81) declares that 
the Constitution, the treaties and the laws of Congress 
shall prevail over any State law or constitution. This 
is the clause giving efficacy to the Avhole Constitution. 
If any State could nullify the national law, nothing 
would be gained by the Union. Now, when a State 
law or State Constitution is passed contrary to the law 
of the Nation every one must consider it void, and the 
State judges must declare it so. 

5. Oath of Allegiance — All members of all State 
and national, legislative, executive, and judicial depart- 
ments are required on taking office to take the oath of 
allegiance, i.e., to support the Constitution of the United 
States (82). Binding the conscience of public officers 



192 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

by oath or solemn affirmation lias ever been considered 
necessary to secure a faithful performance of their 
duties. They are generally required to SAvear not only 
to support the Constitution, but also to discharge the 
duties of their offices to the best of their ability. 

6. Test Oatli — In the same clause, test (often called 
test oath) means an oath or a declaration in favor of or 
against certain religious opinions, as a qualification for 
office. In England, all officers, civil and military, were 
formerly obliged to make a declaration against transub- 
stantiation, and to assent to the doctrines and conform 
to the rules of the established church. The object of 
forbidding it here was to secure to every citizen the 
full enjoyment of religious liberty. But this clause 
does not bind the States. They can provide tests, but 
usually they have similar clauses in their constitutions. 

7. Ratification — By the Constitution (83) nine States 
were to ratify it before it had binding effect in any. The 
immediate ratification of the Constitution by all the 
States was hardly to be expected ; a unanimous ratifica- 
tion, therefore, was not required. But a Union of less 
than nine States was deemed inexpedient. The framers 
concluded their labors on the 17th of September, 1787 ; 
and in July, 1788, the ratification of New Hampshire, 
the ninth State, was received by Congress.* 

8. Commencement of Government — Thus in July, 
1788, the government had begun. During 1788 and the 

* The Constitution could not become binding on any State except 
by its own ratification, for the State was sovereign. But with amend- 
ments it is different. When accepted by three-fourths they are bind- 
ing on all. They have given up their sovereignty to this extent. By 
accepting 1 he Consl itution at first each State agreed that amendments 
might be made binding in that way, even against their consent. 



MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 193 

early part of 1789, Senators, Representatives, and 
Presidential Electors were chosen by the States. In 
February, 1789, General Washington was elected 
President by the Electors, and was inaugurated April 

30th following, when the 1st Constitutional Congress 
assembled. 

CHAPTER XLI 

THE FIRST TWELVE AMENDMENTS 

1. Iii General — It is remarkable that during so long 
a period the Constitution lias received so few changes. 
Up to 18G5, though twelve amendments had been 
added, only the last two of them had made any altera- 
tion in the original provisions. This proves the wisdom 
and skill of the patriots who framed it, to whom we 
should be ever duly grateful for having furnished our 
country with so admirable a bulwark of liberty. 

2. Bill of Rights — This is a name given to the first 
ten amendments, because they contain a list of the 
rights deemed most important to the liberty of the 
people. These amendments do not change any original 
provision of the Constitution. They act merely as 
restrictions and limitations upon the powers of Con- 
gress, and were deemed unnecessary by those who 
framed the Constitution, for the reason that those 
rights were so generally acknowledged, and that the 
powers of Congress were limited to those expressly 
granted to it. But as several of the State conventions 
had, at the time of adopting the Constitution, expressed 
a desire that declarations and guaranties of certain 
rights should be added, in order to prevent miscon- 
struction and abuse, the first Congress, at its first ses- 

13 



194 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

sion, proposed twelve amendments, ten of which were 
ratified by the requisite number of States. 

3. Its Purpose — As long as popular liberty lasted 
sufficient to maintain any part of the Constitution it 
is not probable that any of these rights would have 
been violated, even had they remained unexpressed. 
And yet it was of value to express them. They are 
thus kept in the mind of all, serving as reminders, 
both to the ambitious man who in his power grows 
neglectful of the people's rights, and to the people 
themselves, who sometimes, through excitement and 
sudden indignation, are inclined to forget the rights 
they have guaranteed to every one. It is important 
to remember that the first eight amendments affect 
only Congress and the national courts, not the State 
legislatures. For this reason similar provisions are 
often inserted in State constitutions, to bind the State 
legislatures and courts. We will refer briefly to 
these amendments in their order. 

4. Religious Freedom — The object of the 1st 
Amendment was to prevent the National Government 
from abridging religious freedom in any degree 
(84, 82). In England, though all were free to worship 
as they chose, yet there was an established church, 
supported by the government. Here it was thought 
best not only to have perfect liberty in religion, but 
also to have the Church and State entirely separate. 

5. Freedom of Speech and of the Press — These 
have been before defined (page 1(3). Congress is for- 
bidden to pass any law abridging them (84). The 
object of this provision was not to allow one to go 
unpunished who uttered slander or published libel. It 
was intended to prevent all use of those means which 



MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 105 

in former times had been used to repress the people, 
by forbidding them to speak or write on certain sub- 
jects unless licensed by the government beforehand. 
At one time it was the law in certain countries that 
even the Bible should not be printed except in a cer- 
tain language, which the people did not understand. 
So, also, governments would require all hooks to he 
licensed before they could be printed, and would forbid 
the utterance of any criticism, no matter how just or 
honest, against them or their officers. 

6. Rig-lit to Assemble — So, too, Congress is for- 
bidden to pass any law abridging the right of the 
people to assemble and present petitions <<> the govern- 
ment (84). Under pretence of preventing insurrection 
governments have at times denied the people this right. 

7. Right to Keep Anns — Tl lis means the right of 
every one to own and use, in a peaceful manner, war- 
like weapons; Congress is forbidden to pass any law 
infringing the right (85). It was thought that with- 
out it, ambitious men might, by the aid of the regular 
army, overthrow the liberties of the people and usurp 
the powers of government. 

8. Quartering of Soldiers in Private Houses — The 
3d Amendment arose from a, remembrance of past 
experience (86). Among the grievances enumerated 
in the Declaration of Independence was one "for 
quartering large bodies of armed troops " among the 
people of the Colonies. 

9. Searches and Seizures — A search-warrant is a 
paper issued by a court directing a person's premises 
to be searched, because it is suspected there is stolen 
property there or property subject to duty. A seizure 
is the taking of such property, or the arrest of the 



196 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

person, by the officer. In the early times of English 
history these had been converted into instruments of 
tyrann} r . Search-warrants had been sometimes granted 
when no accusation had been made, and in blank, so 
that by rilling out the blank the officer could search 
any house he chose. The 4th Amendment forbids 
Congress to pass any law authorizing warrants to issue, 
except when good cause is shown, and supported by 
oath (87). 

10. Criminal Proceedings — The object of most of 
the provisions of the 5th and 6th Amendments is the 
protection of one accused of crime. Popular opinion 
is generally hasty in cases of crime, and the rights 
named in these amendments, most of which are easily 
understood,** are such as had been found necessary in 
the history of justice in England to save innocent per- 
sons from punishment. By them Congress is forbidden 
to pass any law infringing these rights (88, 89). So 
important was the trial by jury in criminal cases con- 
sidered, that it had been inserted in the body of the 
Constitution (69). 

11. Private Property — Every government of un- 
limited powers has the right to take the private prop- 
erty of any person, for some public use, and it may be 
done even without compensation. This is called the 
right of eminent domain. But even in those cases 
where Congress has this right, the 5th Amendment 
forbids its exercise without just compensation being 
paid the private owner (88). 

12. Trial by Jury in Civil Cases — We have seen 
that the jury trial is secured in criminal cases (69). 

* In the 5th Amendment "twice put in jeopardy" means tried 
again after having been once acquitted. 



MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 19? 

The 7th Amendment requires it in civil cases * also 
(90). Both these provisions refer only to cases in 
United States courts. The 7th Amendment also pro- 
vides what the effect of a jury's verdict shall be. By 
the rules of the common law, when the jury had 
rendered a decision upon a question of fact upon 
which some witnesses had testified in one way and 
others in another, that question could not be re-exam- 
ined in a higher court. After the passage of the Con- 
stitution it was thought that the clause which gives 
the Supreme Court appellate jurisdiction both as to 
law and fact (68) might give it power to overthrow 
the verdict of a jury, and therefore this amendment 
was added. Thus we see how carefully the Constitu- 
tion protects the security, liberty, and property of 
the people. 

13. Excessive Bail — Bail has been described (page 
88). But it will be seen that the amount of the bond 
might be fixed so high as to prevent persons accused 
of crime from procuring the necessary sureties; 
whereby innocent persons might be subjected to long 
imprisonment before the time of trial. To prevent 
this in the United States courts is the object of the 
8th Amendment. So, also, the degree of punishment is 
often left to the discretion of the court, as in the case 
of treason, where any amount of fine over $10,000 
may be imposed. This amendment serves as a safe- 
guard against excess (91). 

14. Rights of People — There were those who 

* The amendment says " suits at common law." These are dis- 
tinguished from suits in equity or admiralty. It is unnecessary to 
give the meanings of these terms here. " Common law suits" 
include a large majority of all civil cases. 



198 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

feared that because the Constitution mentioned certain 
rights as belonging to the people, those not mentioned 
might be considered as having been surrendered to 
the General Government, or as having never existed. 
To prevent such possible misconstruction was the ob- 
ject of the 9th Amendment (92). 

15. Powers not Delegated — So, also, the 10th 
Amendment was strictly unnecessary, for it is self- 
evident that what one has and does not give away he 
still retains (see page 140). But many were fearful 
that the central government might absorb the powers 
rightfully belonging to the States, and this was in- 
serted to prevent such abuse (93). 

16. Suits against States — No State court can enter- 
tain any suit against a State. The 11th Amendment 
forbids the United States courts to entertain them 
(except by one State against another) (94). During 
the Eevolution the States had issued bills of credit 
which had not been paid. After the adoption of the 
Constitution suits were brought against some of the 
States by private persons to enforce payment of these 
bills of credit, and the Supreme Court decided that 
under the judicial clause (67) this could be done. It 
was in consequence of this decision that the amend- 
ment was passed. Now there is no way for a private 
person to sue a State in any court. It is thought 
best to leave a State free to settle its obligations in 
its own way and in its own time. 

17. Election of President — This is the subject of 
the 12th amendment (95, 96), and has been else- 
where treated (page 168). This amendment was 
adopted in 1801. Under the plan first adopted the 
chief opponent of the President became the Yice- 



MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 199 

President, and as the country had become divided 
into two great opposing parties, they would naturally 
belong each to one of those. Now the Vice-President 
will usually belong to the same party as the President. 

Many have doubted the wisdom of this change. 



CHAPTER XLII 

THE 13TH, 14TH, AND 15TH AMKNPM k.nts 

1. iii General — These three amendments were the 

logical political result of the Civil War. Its ultimate 
cause was negro slavery; its final result, the raising of 
the negro to an equality before the law with the white 
man. These amendments differ from the others in this 

respect, that they are binding on the States as well as 
on the National Government. The States are named 
in them. 

2. Slavery — In 1863 President Lincoln had issued 
the Emancipation Proclamation. Whether this had 
any legal effect or not, the adoption of the 13th 
Amendment in 1805 did abolish slavery throughout 
the country (98). 

3. Civil Rights — But it is evident that a person, 
though not a slave, may not have all the civil rights 
of others, as the right to acquire, hold, or sell prop- 
erty, to engage in trade, to live where he pleases, etc. 
The slaves, emerging from slavery, had no civil rights. 
But by the 11th Amendment they are made citizens 
and all civil rights bestowed upon them (99). This 
was the second step in the elevation of the negro. 

4. Apportionment of Representatives — Thus 
4,000,000 people were added to the number of citizens 



200 NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 

in the United States, and they should be represented 
in the House. Therefore the total population was 
made the basis of representation. But it was antici- 
pated that the Southern States might not give the 
negro the right to vote, and thus he would be deprived 
of his representation in the House, while the white 
population of the South would derive all the gain 
from the increased representation, and therefore it 
was provided that whenever any State denied the suf- 
frage to any male citizens of the United States, its 
Eepresentatives should be proportionately decreased 
in number (100). 

5. Political Disabilities — We have seen that all 
officers of any State or the United States were re- 
quired (82) to take an oath to support the Constitu- 
tion. The North considered that engaging in war 
against the National Government was attempting to 
subvert the Constitution, and therefore a breach of 
that oath. Therefore it was thought best to deprive 
such as had taken the oath and afterward engaged in 
war against the Union, of the right to hold office 
(101). But Congress was allowed to remove the dis- 
ability, and has done so in case of all but a very few. 

6. National Debt — The 14th Amendment also rec- 
ognizes and declares the validity of the national debt, 
but forbids the payment of any debt incurred in aid 
of rebellion, or any claim for the emancipation of the 
slaves (102). The South had incurred a large debt in 
the war, which was thus made void. 

7. Right of Suffrage— But though the colored race 
had all the civil rights, it had not as yet the right to 
vote. We have seen that the qualifications of voters 
is a matter belonging to the State (pages 26, 148, note). 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 201 

But by the 15th Amendment the State is forbidden to 
deny the right of suffrage to any one on account of 
his "race, color, or previous condition of servitude'' 
(103). Thus the third and final step was taken in the 
constitutional changes, by which the black man was 
raised to a political equality with his fellow-man. 

8. Final — We have now completed our review of 
the National Government. The system established 
by the Constitution is peculiar, and is not necessarily 
suited to other countries. But as we study the Con- 
stitution our admiration for it should grow. The 
marvellous prosperity of the country, commercial and 
political, up to 1860, proved how well suited it was to 
our necessities, and the history of the years since the 
Civil War has shown how well grounded it is in the 
love of the people. 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 

The National Government 

Origin and Nature 

1. How was this country governed prior to the Revolution ? 

2. State the causes of the Revolution. 

3. State the political effect upon the Colonies of the Declaration of 

Independence. 

4. When was the Confederation formed ? How long did it last ? 

State its principal defects. 

5. State when the Union was formed. Its fundamental difference 

from the Confederation. The chief differences in detail. 

6. What is the difference between a Confederacy and a Nation ? 

7. Give some instances showing the partial retention of the federa- 

tive principle in the National Government. 

Legislative Department 

8. Name the six objects of the Constitution stated in the preamble. 

9. How many members are there in the House of Representatives ? 

By whom elected ? For what term ? How apportioned 



202 REVIEW QUESTIONS 

among the States at first ? How apportioned now ? Qualifi- 
cations ? 

10. Answer the same questions as to the Senate. 

11. What is the object of two legislative houses ? 

12. Is the Senate or House of the higher dignity ? Why ? 

13. How often does Congress meet ? When ? Define " A Congress." 

14. By whom is impeachment made ? By whom tried ? 

15. State the powers of each House as to its members, officers, 

quorum, adjournment, rules, journal, yeas and nays. 

16. What privilege have members of Congress as to arrest ? Why ? 

As to liberty of speech ? Why ? 

17. What bills may originate in the House ? In the Senate ? 

18. State the reason for the provision as to revenue bills. 

19. Name all the ways in which a bill, having passed both Houses, 

may become a law. 

20. State the fundamental difference between Congress and a State 

legislature as to the origin and extent of their powers. 

21. Name the subjects on which Congress may legislate. 

22. What taxes may Congress lay ? For what purposes ? 

23. From what source does most of the national revenue now come ? 

24. Why has Congress the power to regulate commerce? In what 

ways is it exercised ? Explain retaliation duties. 

25. What is Protection ? Free Trade ? State the chief argument 

for each. Which is the policy of the United States ? 

26. What is Registry of vessels ? Clearance and Entry ? 

27. What is a citizen ? An alien ? Naturalization ? 

28. What is a bankrupt law ? The power, why given to Congress ? 

29. State the powers of Congress as to coinage ; as to weights and 

measures ; as to the Post-Office. Why given ? 

30. What is a copyright ? A patent ? What are their objects ? 

31. What powers has Congress as to piracy ? as to offences under 

international law ? Why given ? 

32. Over what parts of the United States has Congress exclusive 

authority ? 

33. Name some of the implied powers of Congress. 

34. Who has the power to declare war ? Why ? 

35. What are letters of marque ? What is prize ? 

36. II ow is an army raised ? How does Congress control it ? 

37. By whom may the militia be called out ? When ? 

38. Name the prohibitions upon the United States. 

39. What is habeas corpus ? A bill of attainder ? An ex post facto 

law ? An appropriation by Congress ? 

40. State the reason for the prohibitions as to titles of nobility. 

41. Name the prohibitions upon the States. 

42. State the difference between money and legal tender. 

43. What is legal tender in the United States now ? 

Executive Department 

44. What is the advantage of having but one President? 

45. By whom is he elected ? For what term ? 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 203 

46. What other modes were proposed? State the objections to 

them. What was the purpose of the present oner Was its 
purpose accomplished V Why ? 

47. Are Presidential Electors elected or appointed ? By whom ? 

State their proceedings. 

48. When does the House elect the President ? How docs it vote ? 

49. What are the President's qualifications ? Salary ? 

50. What are the duties of the Vice-President ? 

51. State the President's powers as to the army and navy, reprieves 

and pardons, treaties, and appointments. 

52. What is the danger connected with this power of appointment ? 

53. What is the purpose of tin; President's message ? 

54. What is tlir most comprehensive duty <>r the President ? 

55. Name the auxiliary executive departments, and their duties. 

Judicial Depart incut 

56. Explain the necessity for a national judiciary. 

57. Name the national courts. 

58. Can the United States be sued ? Why ? 

59. What is the Court of Claims ? Bow are its judgments enforced ? 

60. Are the judges appointed or elected ? By whom ? For what 

term ? 

61. State the three classes of cases in which the United States courts 

have jurisdiction, with the reason in each case. 

62. What is treason ? What proof necessary ? Its punishment. 

63. Name the crimes which the United States may punish. 

Mtscellaneo us Pro i • is io n s 

64. State the provision of the Constitution as to the rights of citizens 

of one State in another. 

65. How are fugitive criminals returned ? 

66. What protection must the United States extend to the States ? 

67. How may the Constitution be amended ? 

68. When a law of Congress and a State law are antagonistic, which 

must prevail ? A law of Congress and a State constitution ? 

69. What persons are obliged to take the oath to support the Con- 

stitution ? 

70. How did the Constitution originally become binding on a State ? 

How does an amendment to it ? 

71. How many Amendments are there ? What is the Bill of Rights ? 

Its purpose ? 

72. State the substance of each amendment, when it was passed, and 

its purpose. 

73. Can a State be sued by a State in a State court ? In a national 

court ? 

74. Can a State be sued by a private person in a State court ? In a 

national court ? Why ? 



THE GOVERNMENT 
OF ILLINOIS 



/ 



BY 

HARRY PRATT JUDSON, LL.D. 

PROFESSOR OF POLITICAL SCIKNCE, THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO 




NEW YORK 

MAYNARD, MERRILL, & CO., Publishers 

29, 31, and 33 East 19th Street 

1900 



9kclaj // y /goo 



62637 

Copyright, 1900, by 
MAYNARD, MERRILL, & CO. 




THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

CHAPTER I 

HISTORICAL SKETCH 

THE SETTLEMENT OF NORTH AMERICA 

1. English, French, and Spanish— The principal 

European settlements in North America were made 
by the English, the French, and the Spanish. The 
English settlers made their first homes at various 
places along the Atlantic coast, from Maine to 
Georgia. The French established themselves in Xova 
Scotia and New Brunswick (Acadia), on the hanks 
of the St. Lawrence River and of the great Lakes, 
at New Orleans, and at other points on the Missis- 
sippi River and its tributaries. The Spanish set- 
tled most of the West India islands, Florida, and all 
the vast country from California to the Isthmus of 
Panama. 

St. Augustine, the first Spanish settlement on the 
mainland within the present limits of the United 
States, was founded in 1565. In 1607 the English 
made their first permanent * settlement at Jamestown, 
in Virginia. The French settled Quebec in 1608. 

* A previous attempt at settlement in North Carolina had failed. 



4 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

2. Hollanders and Swedes — New York was settled 
originally by people from Holland, and Delaware by 
Swedes. But later both of these colonies were seized 
by the English, and numbers of English settlers fol- 
lowed. Thus the whole Atlantic shore between Acadia 
and Florida was English. 

3. Colonies of England — The land occupied by a 
settlement, or by a closely united group of settlements, 
was called a "colony." The English made thirteen 
of these colonies along the sea-coast, the settlers as 
time passed on gradually pushing farther and farther 
inland. There were, in fact, more than thirteen at 
one time or another, but several were united at differ- 
ent times, so that in the end there were only thirteen. 
Each colony had a government quite separate from 
that of the others. It was this fact which distin- 
guished the colonies one from another, and it was the 
fact of a common government which united several 
settlements into a single colony. 

In the last years of the English dominion in what 
is now the eastern part of the United States, the thir- 
teen colonies were New Hampshire, Massachusetts, 
Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, 
Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North 
Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. 

4. Colonies of France — The French had lost their 
colonies. Their settlements included Acadia, New- 
foundland, Canada, and Louisiana, the last consisting 
of all the land between the Mississippi River and the 
Rocky Mountains. They claimed, too, all the land 
between the Mississippi and the Alleghanies, counting 
it sometimes as dart of Louisiana and sometimes as 
part of Canada. The main French settlements were 



HISTORICAL SKETCH 

at Quebec, Montreal, and New Orleans. They also 
had stations at Detroit, at Mackinac island, at several 
points in the present States of Indiana and Illinois, 
and at various other places. But in a long series 
of wars between France and England the French 
were repeatedly defeated, and were finally compelled 
to give up all these colonies. Newfoundland, Acadia, 
Canada, and the land east of the Mississippi were 
yielded to England. Louisiana (comprising New Or- 
leans and the land from the Mississippi to the Rocky 
Mountains) was ceded to Spain, to compensate that 
country for its losses in lighting as an ally of France. 
Florida, including not merely the State of that name 
but also the southern part of the States of Alabama 
and Mississippi, was given to England by Spain in 
exchange for Cuba, which the English had captured. 
The last treaty involving these great cessions of ter- 
ritory was made in 1703. 

5. Government of the English Colonies — The 
thirteen English settled colonies were all governed in 
very much the same way. Each of them elected by 
a popular vote a legislature, which was empowered 
to make laws for the colony. The legislature might 
make any laws which were not contrary to the laws 
of England. In nearly all the colonies there were a 
governor and a number of judges for the law courts, 
appointed by the English king. In Connecticut and 
Rhode Island the people elected the governor and he 
appointed the judges. In Pennsylvania and Mary- 
land the governor and judges were appointed by the 
English " proprietor," for these two colonies were the 
property of certain English families to which the king 
had given the land before it was settled. 



6 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

6. Extent of the English Colonies — The territory 
which the colonies covered, or which they claimed 
to cover, was in many cases considerably more exten- 
sile than is that of the present States of the same 
names. Rhode Island, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, 
Delaware, and Maryland claimed no more land as 
colonies than they now have as States. But the 
present State of Maine was a part of the colony of 
Massachusetts. The present State of Vermont was 
claimed by New Hampshire and New York. Besides 
this, the colonies of Massachusetts, Connecticut, New 
York, Yirginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia claimed 
that their western boundary was the Mississippi 
River. 

The original English settlers obtained their legal 
title to the land from the king. The mainland of 
North America was discovered in 1497 by Cabot, an 
English voyager, who sailed along the coast from 
Labrador to some point near Florida. On the ground 
of this discovery England claimed to own the con- 
tinent between the northernmost and the southern- 
most limits of Cabot's voyage, and as far west as the 
land extended — i.e., to the Pacific. By existing Eng- 
lish custom land so claimed was part of the royal 
domain, and hence directly controlled by the king and 
not by parliament. Accordingly, when companies were 
formed to effect settlement, it was from the king that 
they obtained a grant of the soil and of jurisdiction 
over it. 

These grants of the king — "charters" they are 
usually called — in many cases defined the territory 
conveyed as extending clear across the continent to 
the Pacific Ocean. That was the case with the char- 



HISTORICAL SKETCH 7 

ters of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Virginia, the two 
Carolinas, and Georgia. In L763, however, the treaty 
by which France yielded to England ail French claims 
in America east of the Mississippi contained also a 
stipulation whereby England in turn renounce* 1 her 
claim to any of the soil west of that river. The effect 
of this of course was to cut off the western extent of 
the colonies above noted at the great river. 

It should also be observed that when the king gave 
New York to his brother, the Duke of York, in 1<W>4, 
and Pennsylvania to William Penn, in 1681, he merely 
rescinded the Massachusetts and Connecticut grants of 
his predecessors so far as the land of the two former 
colonies was concerned. However, the two New Eng- 
land colonies continued to claim title to the land 
within the limits of their original grants west of Penn- 
sylvania. 

7. Independence of the Colonies — In 177"> the 
thirteen original English colonies, becoming dissatis- 
fied with the government at London, and failing to 
obtain the concessions which they demanded, took 
up arms, and a long civil Avar followed. The colonies 
sent delegates to a Congress at Philadelphia for 
the management of their common concerns, and in 
1776 this Congress declared the independence of the 
colonies, under the name of the " United States of 
America. " From this time the Americans dropped the 
term " colony," the word " state " being substituted. 
The thirteen States in 17S1 adopted a constitution for 
their common government, this document being called 
" Articles of Confederation." Two years later the 
Avar came to an end, Great Britain recognizing the 
independence of the United States. Thus the Ameri- 



8 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

can Republic became a nation, with a government of 
its own. 

8. The Constitution — The Articles of Confedera- 
tion proved very unsatisfactory. In order to form a 
better government a convention met at Philadelphia 
in 1787, the members being appointed by the legisla- 
tures of the various States, and agreed on a new plan, 
which they called the " Constitution of the United 
States." This plan the States accepted, and in 1789 
the government under this Constitution began its 
work. 

9. Old States and New States — The States which 
adopted the Constitution were the thirteen which had 
united under the Articles of Confederation, which 
had declared their independence of Great Britain in 
1776, and which had originally been British colonies. 
But one provision of the Constitution gave to the 
Congress power to admit new States into the Union.* 
This power Congress has exercised repeatedly, until 
now (1899) there are forty-five States, the old thirteen 
and thirty-two new ones. 

THE WESTERN TERRITORY OF THE REPUBLIC 

10. The West — Nearly all of these thirty-two new 
States at one time formed part of the territory which 
belonged to the Union as the property, not of the 
several States, but of the republic. That from which 
Illinois has been formed, however, was part of the 
western land which, before the War of Independence, 
was claimed by several of the colonies. 

*U. S. Const., Art. IV., §3. 



HISTORICAL SKETCH 9 

11. Land Claims —The land enclosed by the Alle- 
ghany Mountains, the Mississippi River, and the great 
hikes was claimed by more than one Of the colonies, and 
they continued their claim after they became States. 

12. Massachusetts claimed the land west of New 
Fork as far as the Mississippi, between her northern 
and southern boundary lines, as Laid down in her char- 
ter —42° 2' and about 43 43' 12" north latitude. This 
strip was not far from a hundred miles wide, and ex- 
tended through the southern pari of the present States 
of Michigan and Wisconsin and the northern pari of 
Illinois. It included all of Illinois that lies north of 
the parallel 42° 2' north latitude. 

13. Connecticut claimed the land west of New Fork 
and Pennsylvania as far as the Mississippi, between 
her northern and southern boundary lines, as laid 
down in her charter — 42° 2' and 41 north latitude. 
The strip was about sixty-two miles wide, and ex- 
tended through the northern parts of the present 
States of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, and the southern 
part of Michigan. 

14. Virginia claimed the land west to the Mississippi 
River, between the northern and southern parallels of 
latitude laid down in her charter — from the southern 
boundary of the present State of Virginia carried west 
as far as the Mississippi, to the parallel of 41° north 
latitude, and included between the Mississippi on the 
west and the present States of Virginia, Maryland, 
and Penns}dvania on the east. This covered all the 
State of Illinois south of the parallel of 41°. 

By another explanation of the Virginia charter (of 
1G09), the northern boundary of her possessions was 
not a parallel of latitude, but a line beginning at a 



10 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

point on the Atlantic coast two hundred miles north 
of Old Point Comfort and running northwest. This 
would have included the whole of Illinois within the 
Virginia claim. 

Virginia had another claim which covered Illinois. 
When the Revolutionary War broke out, the few scat- 
tered settlements north of the Ohio River were held 
by British garrisons, and were made the starting- 
points of Indian raids against the American border 
settlements. In order to break up these raids, Vir- 
ginia, in 1778, sent a small army of State troops under 
Gen. George Rogers Clarke to attack the British gar- 
risonp. The expedition was successful. Clarke cap- 
tured the posts of Kaskaskia and Cahokia (in Illinois) 
and Vincennes (in Indiana), and thus when the war 
came to an end in 1783 a great part of the land 
beyond the Ohio was in the actual possession of Vir- 
ginia. By reason of this conquest Virginia claimed 
title to all the territory from, the Ohio to the great 
lakes. This claim also included all of Illinois. 

15. The State of New York also claimed the terri- 
tory west of the Alleghany Mountains, but on quite 
a different ground — treaties between New York and 
the Indian " Six Nations." These were a confederacy 
of tribes living within the limits of the present State 
of New York. They were fierce and warlike savages, 
and before the American War of Independence had 
succeeded in overcoming their Indian neighbors on all 
sides. Their Avar parties roamed as far west as the 
Mississippi, and compelled the conquered tribes to ad- 
mit some sort of supremacy of the victors. Then the 
authorities of New York made several treaties with 
the Indian confederacy, by which in turn that colony 



HISTORICAL SKETCH 11 

acquired a supremacy over the Six Nations and their 
land. Accordingly New York claimed all the land 
which the confederacy had conquered, which meant 
about all the space enclosed by the Allegbanies, the 
great lakes, and the Mississippi, it will he seen that 
this, too, included all of Illinois. 

Hi. Western Land Ceded to the United States — 

These conflicting claims to the same land on the part 
of Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Fork, and Vir- 
ginia led to many disputes and much trouble. In- 
deed there were other claims than those which have 
been detailed, which were settled only with great 
difficulty. But it was clear that the rivalry for the 
vast domain beyond the Ohio would strain the repub- 
lic seriously. In fact, tin 4 State of Maryland, which 
made no claim to western land, would not consent to 
the Articles of Confederation until it was settled that 
the claimant States would cede their western terri- 
tory to the Union. New York led the way in 17 s <>. 
and the other States followed not long after. The 
Virginia cession was made in 17S4. and comprised all 
the land northwest of the Ohio River. The cession 
of Massachusetts was made in 17S4, and that of Con- 
necticut in 1780. Thus the land included within the 
present State of Illinois came to be owned by the 
United States. 

The cessions by the States, with some few excep- 
tions, gave to the Union both the ownership of the 
soil and governmental jurisdiction over it. One of 
the exceptions was the stipulation that the white set- 
tlers (mostly French) already living in the ceded ter- 
ritory should continue to own the farms and homes 
which they already occupied. 



12 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 



THE GOVERNMENT OF THE CEDED TERRITORY 

17. French Settlers — The first white settlers within 
the limits of .Illinois Avere French. The main French 
settlements in North America, it will be remembered, 
were at Quebec and Montreal, on the St. Lawrence, 
and at New Orleans, near the mouth of the Missis- 
sippi. Communication between these remote points 
was effected by means of boats, which were paddled 
up the great lakes and up some stream which flowed 
into the lakes, were then carried overland and launched 
again in a stream whose waters flowed toward the 
Mississippi, and thus in time floated down the great 
river to New Orleans. 

There were several of these routes between the lakes 
and the Mississippi, each with its " portage," as the 
path was called over which the boats were carried 
from stream to stream. One was up Green Bay and 
Fox River, and then down the Wisconsin River to the 
Mississippi; another was up the Chicago River, and 
down the Desplaines and the Illinois; another was up 
the St. Joseph's River, and down the Kankakee and 
the Illinois. There were also several ways of reaching 
the Ohio River from the lakes, one being by way of 
the Wabash River. The route by the Illinois River 
was a favorite one, as the streams traversed have a 
comparatively sluggish current, and their headwaters 
are so interlaced that the portages are not very long 
or difficult. 

For the protection of these routes, as well as for the 
prosecution of the fur trade with the Indians, small 
settlements were established at various points. Among 



HISTORICAL SKETCH 13 

them were Kaskaskia, on the river of that name near its 
junction with the Mississippi: Cahokia, or the Missis- 
sippi nearly opposite the present city of St. Louis: and 
Vincennes, on the [ndiana side of the Wabash River. 
At each of these places was a fort with a garrison of 
French soldiers. The most elaborate French fort, 
however, was Fort Chartres, on the Mississippi be- 
tween Cahokia and the mouth of the Kaskaskia. Dur- 
ing the period of Frencli control, the Northwest was 
sometimes a part of Louisiana, and so subject to the 
government at New Orleans; at other times a pari of 
Canada, and so subject to the government at Quebec. 

18. English Government -After the transfer of 
the territory to England in L763, English garrisons 
replaced those of France (1765), and the government 
was in the hands of the military officers at the various 
posts. In 1774, however, an act of the British Par- 
liament, the "Quebec Act," extended the limits of 
Canada to the Ohio and the Mississippi. This made 
the Illinois country subject to the British military 
government at Quebec. However, the same act of 
Parliament extended over all the province the old 
Frencli law, to which the people were accustomed. 

19. A County of Virginia— In 1778 the Illinois coun- 
try was occupied by Virginia troops, and the legisla- 
ture of that State passed an act providing for a regular 
civil government. All the land north of the Ohio 
which Virginia claimed was formed into a county 
which was named " Illinois." A military officer was 
appointed to take charge of the civil government, with 
the title of " lieutenant-commandant/' lie organized 
courts of law, and acted as a sort of deputy governor, 
under the governor of Virginia. This arrangement 



14 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

Lasted until 17S4, when Virginia ceded her land claims 
north of the Ohio to the United States. Congress did 
not immediately take any steps for the organization of 
the new territory, so for several years the settlers had 
practically no government, excepting such as they 
were able to provide for themselves. 

20. The Ordinance of 1787 — In 1787 Congress * at 
last took action for the proper government of the ter- 
ritory which had been ceded to the United States by 
the several States. The law which was passed was 
the famous " Ordinance of 1787." All the ceded land 
hounded by Pennsylvania, the Ohio River, the Missis- 
sippi, and the great lakes was formed into a single 
territory to be known as the " Territory Northwest of 
the Ohio River," more commonly known as the 
" Northwest Territory." The government was to be 
in the hands of a governor, secretary, and three 
judges, to be appointed by Congress. The governor 
and judges were empowered to select from the laws 
of the existing States such as would be applicable 
to the Territory. It was provided that as soon as 
there should be five thousand free white persons of 
full age in the Territory, there should be a law- 
making body to be known as the General Assembly, 
which should consist of the governor and two houses, 
the Legislative Council and the House of Representa- 
tives. The members of the House of Representatives 
were to be elected by the people, the members of the 
Council, Jive in number, were to be appointed by the 
Congress from ten nominated by the House of Repre- 

* The Congress under the Articles of Confederation — the new Con- 
stitution had not yet been adopted. 



HISTORICAL SKETCH 15 

sentatives. The General Assembly by joint ballol 

was to elect a delegate to Congress, who should have 
the right to speak, but not to vote. 

Another important stipulation was that the Terri- 
tory in due time should be cut up into States, which 
should be admitted to the [Jnion on an exact equality 
with the old States. These new States should be not 
less than three nor more than five in number. If 
there should be three Suites, the westernmost was t<> 
he bounded by the Mississippi, the Ohio, and Wabash 
fivers, and by a line drawn from Vincennes due north 
to the Internationa] boundary. It will he seen thai If 
this plan had been adopted, Illinois to-day would have 
included all of Wisconsin, the upper peninsula of 
Michigan, and Minnesota east of the Mississippi. But 
it was also agreed that Congress might, if it thoughl 
best, form either one or two additional States from 
that part of the territory which should lie north of a 
due east and west line drawn through the most south- 
erly point of Lake 1 Michigan. Had this plan been 
exactly carried out. Illinois would have no part of the 
shore of Lake 1 Michigan, hut Chicago and nearly all of 
the northern fourteen counties of the State would he 
a part of Wisconsin. 

21. The Northwest Territory — Congress appointed 
Gen. Arthur St. (lair, a Revolutionary veteran, as 
governor of the Northwest Territory. The first 
American settlement was made' at Marietta, in the 
present State of Ohio, in April, 17SS. In the follow- 
ing July Governor St. Clair arrived, and the terri- 
torial government was set in motion. One of his 
earliest acts was to create a county to include Marietta 
and the adjacent settlements, and to appoint officers 



16 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

for its government. This county, which comprised all 
of the present State of Ohio east of the Scioto River, 
he named Washington. It is the oldest county in the 
States which have been formed from the Northwest 
Territory. 

22. The Ordinance under the Constitution — In 
the spring of 1789 the new government of the United 
States under the Constitution went into operation. 
August 7th of that year Congress amended the ordi- 
nance of 1787, so that officers of the Territory to be 
appointed by Congress were thereafter to be appointed 
by the President with the approval of the Senate. 
President Washington at once reappointed Governor 
St. Clair. 

23. The First American Laws — The first American 
laws which were supposed to be in force throughout 
the Illinois settlements were those selected by Gov- 
ernor St. Clair and the judges at Marietta in the sum- 
mer of 1788. But, as a matter of fact, no provision 
was made at the outset for any legal organization in 
the remote parts of the Territory, and so the odd con- 
dition which had prevailed since 1784 continued for 
some time longer. 

24. St. Clair County — In February, 1790, however, 
at the suggestion of President Washington, Governor 
St. Clair arrived at Kaskaskia, and proceeded to or- 
ganize a suitable local government. He created a 
county, which was named St. Clair, embracing all 
of the present State of Illinois bounded by the Ohio, 
the Mississippi, and the Illinois rivers, and a line 
drawn from Fort Massac (on the Ohio) to the mouth 
of the Mackinaw River. Within this county courts 
of law were established, and a sheriff and county clerk 



HISTORIC 'A L SEE TCE 1 7 

appointed. Caliokia was made the county seat. St. 

Clair County was the first within the limits of Illinois, 
and the courts and officers appointed by Governor St. 
Clair formed the firsl Local government within Illinois 
under the laws of the United States. 

25. Second Grade of Territorial Government — In 
1798, the white population of the Northwest Territory 
having passed the minimum of five thousand pre- 
scribed by the ordinance of L787, the governor and 
judges ceased to have legislative powers, a territorial 
legislature taking their place. This made what is 
known as the second grade of government for a Terri- 
tory. The people elected their representatives to the 
lower house of this Legislature, two of the twenty-two 
being chosen from the Illinois settlements. The Legis- 
lature chose the secretary of the Territory, William 
Henry Harrison (afterward President of the United 
States), as delegate to Congress. 

£56. The Territory of Indiana — In 1800 the North- 
west Territory was divided by act of Congress, the 
portion lying west of a line drawn from the Ohio at 
the month of the Kentucky River to Fort Recovery, 
and thence due north to the British boundary, being 
organized as the Territory of Indiana. The capital of 
the new Territory was put at Vincennes. The gov- 
ernment of Indiana Territory was made of the first 
grade, like that of the Northwest Territory before 
1798. President John Adams appointed the terri- 
torial delegate in Congress, William Henry Harrison. 
as governor of Indiana. 

27. The Second Grade for Indiana — The act of 
1800 provided that Indiana might have a government 
of the second grade whenever the people should so 



18 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

vote. An election was held on that question in 1804, 
and the majority was in the affirmative. Accordingly 
Governor Harrison issued a proclamation calling an 
election for nine representatives to form the lower 
house of the legislature. This body was duly organ- 
ized in 1805. 

28. The Boundaries of Indiana Changed — When 
Ohio was admitted to the Union as a State (1802), the 
eastern boundary of Indiana Territory was moved to 
the east, the new line beginning at the mouth of the 
Great Miami River. In 1805 (January 11th) the 
northern part of Indiana Territory was cut off and 
formed into the Territory of Michigan. The southern 
boundary was a line drawn from the southernmost 
point of Lake Michigan east to Lake Erie ; the western 
boundary was a line drawn from the same southern- 
most point of Lake Michigan through the middle of 
that lake to its northern extremity, and thence due 
north to the British line. Indiana Territory there- 
after included nearly all of the present States of 
Indiana and Illinois, together with all of Wisconsin 
and the eastern part of Minnesota. 

ILLINOIS A TERRITORY 

29. The Act of 1800— There was much discord be- 
tween the eastern and western parts of Indiana. The 
settlements in the Illinois country and those about the 
Wabash River were separated by many miles of unin- 
habited land, and their interests were quite different. 
These facts led to an earnest movement in favor of a 
still further division of the Territory. Congress was 
finally induced to grant the request, and in 1809 (Feb- 



HISTORICAL sketch 19 

ruary 3d) passed an act creating the Territory of Illi- 
nois. It was to take effect on the first day of March 

in that year. The Territory was bounded by the Mis- 
sissippi, the Ohio, the Wabash, a line due north from 
Vincennes, and the British boundary. The govern- 
ment was to be of the first grade, like thai originally 

put in force for the Northwest Territory and in the 
Territory of Indiana, with the proviso, however, that 
ehange might be made to the second grade whenever 
satisfactor}^ evidence should be given to the governor 
that such was the desire of a majority of the free- 
holders (landowners). The capital was fixed at Kas- 
kaskia. On the recommendation of Henry Clay. 
Judge Ninian Edwards, of Kentucky, was appointed 
governor of Illinois (April, 1809) by President Madi- 
son. In 1812 the Territory was advanced to the sec- 
ond grade of government, Congress, however, allow- 
ing both houses of the legislature to be elected by 
the people. 

30. Population — At the time of the treaty of L763, 
the French settlements in the Illinois country were 
estimated to number about 2,000 white people, with 
perhaps 900 negroes (mostly slaves). Many of these 
crossed the Mississippi in order to escape from the 
rule of their hereditary enemies, the British. After 
Clarke's conquest in 1778 American settlers began to 
come to the country, but for some years the immigra- 
tion probably hardly exceeded the emigration of the 
old French settlers. In 1800 it was estimated that 
there were 2,000 whites in the Illinois country — 1,200 
French and 800 Americans. The census of that year 
gave a total population of 50,946 in the whole North- 
west Territory, Indians, of course, not included. 



20 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

When the Indiana Territory was formed, in 1800, it 
was supposed to contain about 5,000 whites, with per- 
haps 100,000 Indians. The Illinois Territory, in 1809, 
was conjectured to have about 9,000 whites. The 
census of 1810 showed a population of 12,282. 

ILLINOIS A STATE 

31. Enabling Act of 1818— After the War of 1812 
migration flowed steadily into the Territory, so that 
by 1818 there were supposed to be 40,000 people. 
The census of 1820 gave Illinois 55,162. A petition 
from the people of the Territory for statehood was 
heeded by Congress, an act being passed April 18, 
1818, defining the boundaries of the proposed State, 
and authorizing the people to hold a convention for 
the formation of a State constitution. 

32. Boundaries of the State — The eastern boundary 
of the Territory had been altered slightly in 1816, 
when Indiana was admitted as a State. The line 
fixed at that time followed the middle of the Wabash 
Kiver from its mouth, "to a point where a due north 
line drawn from the town of Yincennes would last 
touch the nortlnvestern shore of the said river, and 
from thence by a due north line until the same shall 
intersect an east and west line drawn through a point 
ten miles north of the southern extreme of Lake 
Michigan." * 

In thus fixing the boundary of Indiana, two things 
are to be noticed. The first is, that the new line from 
the mouth of the Wabash was so drawn that no part 

* Enabling Act for Indiana, 1810, § 2. 



HISTORIC 'A L 8KETC 7/ 2 i 

of the eastern shore should be in Illinois, a much more 
convenient arrangement than was afforded by the act 
of 1809. The second thing is that, contrary to the 

provision of the ordinance of L787, Indiana was car- 
ried ten miles north of the east and west line drawn 
through the southernmost point of Lake Michigan. 
This was for the purpose of giving the new State a 
frontage on the great lake. 

In the enabling act for Illinois, the eastern line was 
made the western line of Indiana. Then from the 
northwestern corner of that State the Illinois line was 
made to run east to the middle of hake Michigan, 
thence north, along the middle of the lake, to the lati- 
tude of 42° 30', thence west to the Mississippi River. 
Thence the line ran down the middle of the river to 
the Ohio, and thence along the northwestern shore of 
the Ohio to the point of beginning at the mouth of 
the Wabash.* 

By the terms of the ordinance of 17*7 the north line 
of the State would have been an east and west line 
drawn through the southernmost point ol' Lake Michi- 
gan; in other words, the line of north latitude, 41° 37' 
7.9". The northerly extension to 42° 30' was for the 
sake of giving Illinois also a frontage on the lake. In 
later years the people of Wisconsin and those of the 
northern counties of Illinois remonstrated vigorously 
against the expansion of Illinois. 

33. Illinois Admitted to the Union — The conven- 
tion provided in the enabling act was duly elected by 
the people, and met at Kaskaskia in July, ISIS. On 
the 26th of August a constitution for the State was 

* Enablim 



22 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

adopted by the convention, and on the 3d of Decem- 
ber Congress accepted the same and declared Illinois 
duly admitted as a State of the Union. Meanwhile 
an election for State officers had been held, and the 
legislature met for organization in October. In Jan- 
uary, 1819, the month after Congress had formally 
admitted Illinois to the Union, the legislature recon- 
vened at Ivaskaskia, and the machinery of State gov- 
ernment was put in motion. 

34. Constitution of 1818— The Constitution of 1818 
was not submitted to the people for their approval. 
By its provisions not many State offices w r ere elec- 
tive. The people chose the governor, lieutenant-gov- 
ernor, and members of the two houses of the legis- 
lature, besides the sheriff and coroner in each county. 
The judges and nearly all other State officers were 
chosen by the legislature. The governor did not have 
the veto power. In various other ways the first Con- 
stitution of the State did not prove wholly satisfac- 
tory ; still it continued the supreme law of the State 
for thirty years. 

35. Constitution of 1848 — In 1847 a second con- 
vention was held and a new constitution was drawn 
up. This was referred to the people, and was ratified 
at an election held in March, 1848. The Constitution 
went into effect April 1st following. 

36. Proposed New Constitution of 1802— In 1862 
a third constitutional convention was held, and a re- 
vised constitution was submitted to the people, only 
to be rejected by a decisive majority. 

37. Constitution of 1 870 — A fourth convention was 
held in L869 7<». and a fourth plan for a constitution 
was devised. This, the third Constitution which Illi- 



HISTORICAL SKETCH 23 

nois lias had, was adopted by vote of the people, July 
2, 187<>. 

:$s. The state Capitals — The scat of the Territorial 
government of Illinois was Kaskaskia. and this was 
also the first State capital. The ( lonstitution of L818, 
however, provided thai Congress should be petitioned 
for a grant of land on the Kaskaskia River, somewhat 
near the centre of the State (east and west), on which 
should be built a new town, which should be the 
of government." Thereafter, and immediately, if the 
petition should be denied, the legislature was author- 
ized to fix the capital at discretion. 

Congress granted the petition, and commissioners 
appointed by the State Legislature selected the site 
on. which the town of Vandalia was afterward built. 
As the land belonged to the State, lots were Bold to 
private individuals, and with the proceeds public build- 
ings were erected. The State archives were removed 
to Yandalia in December, L820. 

Before the twenty-year limit fixed in the Constitu- 
tion of 1818 had expired, action was taken by the leg- 
islature again to change the location of the capital. 
The growth of population had been very great in the 
northern part of the State, and therefore an act was 
passed in 1837 fixing the seat of government at Spring- 
field, where it has since remained. The change was 
actually made in December, 1830. 

39. The Metropolis — Chicago at the outset was 
merely a United States fort — Fort Dearborn — which 
was situated on the shore of the Chicago River near 
the present Rush Street bridge. AVhen the plan of 

* 111. Const, of 1818, Schedule. § 13. 



24 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

the Illinois unci Michigan Canal was adopted, a strip 
of land along its route, five miles wide on either side, 
was granted by Congress to the State of Illinois for 
the purpose of raising the money needed. In 1830 the 
Canal Commission had a portion of this land surveyed 
and laid out in town lots (p. 34). This was the town 
of Chicago, and the sale of these lots brought the first 
income to the canal project. At that time there were 
only seven families residing in the vicinity outside of 
Fort Dearborn. In 1831 Cook County was organized, 
with far more than its present area, and Chicago was 
made the count}^ seat. In 1833 Chicago was incorpo- 
rated as a village, the population being 350. In 1837 
a city charter was obtained, the population at the city 
census in July of that year being 4,170. The popula- 
tion by the census of 1890 was 1,099,850, and by the 
school census of 1898 was estimated at 1,851,588. 



CHAPTER II 
THE LAND AND THE PEOPLE 

1. Boundaries of Illinois — The State of Illinois is 
nearly surrounded by water the Mississippi River on 
the west, the Ohio River on the south, the Wabash 

River on the cast, and hake Michigan on the north- 
cast. 

2. Rivers— The rivers which How through the State 
have in most cases a southwesterly course, and empty 
into the Mississippi; the Rock, the Illinois, and the Kas- 
kaskia being the principal ones. There are also some 
small affluents of Lake Michigan and of the Wabash 
and Ohio livers. The Desplaines, one of the two 
streams which unite to form the Illinois, rises near 
Lake Michigan, and flows not far from the Chicago and 
Calumet rivers, a 111 uents of the lake. The Indians and 
French explorers in the old days took advantage of 
this fact to carry their canoes over tin 1 short "port- 
age," and in this way to pass easily from the waters 
of the lakes to the waters of the Mississippi. The 
divide between these two systems of water communi- 
cation is so low that the State has pierced it with a 
waterway — the Illinois and Michigan Canal — and a 
great drainage channel has also been cut, the effect of 
which is expected to be that the Chicago River will 
flow from the lake and will empty its waters into the 
Desplaines. 



26 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

3. Surface and Soil — The surface of the State is 
quite level, being for the most part prairie with rich 
black soil and with few trees. Two lines of hills are 
found, one in the north and one nearly in the extreme 
south. The prairie soil makes the best of farm lands, 
and the agricultural riches of Illinois are among the 
greatest in the Union. 

4. Coal and Lead — Bituminous coal is found in 
many parts of the State, and lead mines in the north- 
western part, near Galena. 

5. Railroads and Manufactures — Railroads reach 
in every direction, making travel and the transporta- 
tion of merchandise easy and comparatively inexpen- 
sive. Manufacturing industries of many kinds have 
sprung up and nourish, affording employment to many 
thousands of people. Thriving cities are found in 
every section — Chicago, on Lake Michigan, being the 
second city of the United States in population. 

6. Indians — The earliest white settlers of Illinois, 
the French from Canada, found its prairies possessed 
by a number of Indian tribes. The most prominent 
were the Illinois Confederacy, from whom the river and 
the State have the name. This confederacy consisted 
of five tribes — the Tamaroas, Michigamies, Kaskaskias, 
Caliokias, and Peorias — and lived in the central and 
southern parts of the State. Besides these there were 
the Shawnees, near the Ohio ; the Piankeshaws, in 
the southeast ; the Sacs and Foxes, in the northwest, 
and the Kickapoos and Potawatamies, near Lake 
Michigan. These tribes have long since disappeared 
from the State, some few of their descendants being 
found in the Indian Territory and in reservations 
elsewhere. 



TIIE LAND AND THE PEOPLE -^ 

7. French — The French settlements in Illinois wen 
not very many or very large. They were merely a 
few villages of farmers and fur-traders scattered along 
the Illinois, the Kaskaskia, and the Mississippi rivers. 
Kaskaskiawas the main settlement: Fort Chartres, on 
the Mississippi, was the chief stronghold. The total 
number of French inhabitants in L765, when the Brit- 
ish took possession, probably did not exceed L,400> and 
that number was diminished rather than increased in 
Later years. This did not include negro slaves, of 
whom then; were several hundred. 

8. Americans— After Illinois became a part of the 
United States, American settlers began to find out the 
value of its rich prairies, and so to come in consider- 
able numbers. The only route followed for many 
years was by way of the Ohio River, and tin 4 early 
A n lerican settlers came mostly from Southern Stales 
Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, and others. Their 
settlements were mainly in the southern pari of the 
State. Later it became easier to travel by the great 
lakes, and immigrants came in that way from North- 
ern and Eastern States. 

9. European Immigrants When the great tide of 
immigration from Europe to America set in, large 
numbers came to Illinois from almost every European 
country, Germany and the Scandinavian lands in par- 
ticular. The railroads, too, brought a still greater 
population from Eastern States. The descendants of 
all these different classes of immigrants compose the 
people of Illinois to-day. But whatever their an- 
cestry, they are all Americans now. 



CHAPTER III 
POLITICAL DIVISIONS OF THE STATE 

1. Permanent and Temporary Divisions — For con- 
venience of government the State is divided into a 
number of smaller areas. Some of these are relatively 
permcmmt — i.e., they may be changed, and in fact 
are changed more or less, but at the same time there 
is no provision for their periodical change. Other 
divisions of the State are relatively temporary — i.e., 
they are intended to be changed at rather frequent 
intervals. 

A further difference between these two classes of 
subdivisions lies in the fact that in one of the perma- 
nent areas many functions of government are per- 
formed, while in one of the temporary areas there is 
generally but a single function. 

PERMANENT DIVISIONS 

2. Counties — First of all, the State is divided into 
counties. This is a division which the original English 
colonics introduced, copying it from England. It is 
now common to all the States. Louisiana calls the 
divisions parishes, it is true, but they are the same 
thing. 

The first county established within the present limits 
of Illinois was St. Clair. This was organized by Gov- 



POLITICAL DIVISIONS OF TIIE STATE 29 

ernor St. Clair, of the Northwest Territory, in 17 ( .»< ». 
and included all the land contained by the Mississippi, 
the Ohio, the Wabash, and the Illinois rivers and a 
line drawn from the Wabash to the mouth of the Little 
Mackinaw Creek, at its confluence with the Illinois. 

Under the Constitution of the State, the power to 
organize counties belongs to the Genera] Assembly. 
There are now 1<»*2 counties in Illinois. 

Tin 1 power of the Legislature is limited, however, by 
some specific requirements. No action may he taken 
which will make a county area to he less than 4«>o 
square miles. IS'o changes may he made in county 
lines without the assent of the people concerned (111. 
('oust., Art. X., §§ 1-8). The day of vast counties 
largely uninhabited is long since none by, and changes 
are not likely, unless in a case such as that of Cook 
County, in which a great city population makes county 
government rather cumbersome. 

-Counties are always given a name, usually that of 
some man prominent in national. State, or local affairs 
(p. 123). 

The village or city in which the principal functions 
of county government are performed is called the 
county seat. This place is fixed by the act of the 
General Assembly which creates the county. But no 
change of such place may be made unless with the 
assent of three-fifths of the voters of the county, and 
no county line may be made to run within less than 
ten miles of a countv seat (111. Const., Art. X., 

§§1,4)- 

3. Towns — For the further convenience of local 
government, any county whose people so desire is 
divided into towns. 



30 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

4:. Townships — In the State Constitution, and in a 
part of the statute enacted by the General Assembly, 
the term township is used as applied to these divisions 
of the county (111. Const. , Art. X. , § 5). * But at the 
same time both Constitution and statute also use the 
term town in the same sense (111. Const., Art. X., § 7).f 
As a matter of fact, township is a term properly used 
only in the sense of the United States land survey, 
and always means a piece of land six miles square 
(p. 31). Doubtless in the act of Congress for the land 
survey, as well as in the State Constitution as adopted 
in 1848, it Avas the expectation that as settlement was 
made the survey lines would coincide with areas which 
would be convenient for government. In that case 
town and township would be identical. 

But it has turned out that in many cases it is incon- 
venient to have the two areas coincide, so that not a 
few towns are quite different geographically from Con- 
gressional townships, one town often containing por- 
tions of two or more townships. For this reason we 
shall speak of townships only in the sense of the land 
survey, and of the subdivisions of a county for pur- 
poses of local government always as towns. In this 
sense of the terms, it will be noticed, also, that towns 
are always named, while townships are always num- 
bered. 

At this time (1899) 83 of the 102 counties of the 
State are divided into towns. 

5. How Towns Are Formed — A county may be 
divided into towns whenever a majority of the voters 
at a general election favor the proposition. In that 

* Rev. Stat., c. 139, §§ 1-4. \ Rev. Stat., e. 139, §§ 5-8. 



POLITICAL DIVISIONS OF THE STATE 31 

case it is the duly of the county board to appoint three 
commissioners for the purpose of making the division. 
The commissioners are to make the towns coincide 
with Congressional townships when it is convenient 
to do so." 

c>. Names — The commissioners select names for the 
towns, following the wishes of the inhabitants, if they 
have definite wishes. But no two towns in the State 
may have the same name.f 

7. The Land Survey —When the States began to 
cede their western hinds to the United States, it be- 
came desirable to establish a uniform system of land 
survey, so that there should he no material difficulty 
in describings any portion which might he sold.£ 

8. The Rectangular System— Congress appointed a 
committee, of which Thomas Jefferson was chairman. 
to consider the subject, and this committee recom- 
mended what is called the rectangular system. With 
some modifications the plan of the committee was 
adopted by Congress (1785), and that plan, with vari- 
ations in detail, is the system which has been in use 
ever since. 

9. Townships — The essence of the plan is merely to 
divide the public land into squares by a series of lines 
running north and south and east and west. These 
squares, each miles on a side, or 36 square miles in 
area, are townships^ usually called Congressional town- 
ships, because provided by act of Congress. 

10. Sections — Each township is subdivided by a 
further series of lines into 36 squares, each containing 



* Rev. Stat., e. 139. §§1-6. f Rev. Stat., c. 139, 

\ Donaldson, pp. 178, 587. 



32 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

one square mile, or 640 acres. These squares are called 
sections. 

11. Quarter Sections — Each section in turn is 
divided into four quarter sections, and the quarter sec- 
tion is often further subdivided. 

It will be noticed that all the survey lines are in- 
tended to run due north and south, or due east and 
west. 

The sections in a township are numbered, beginning 
with Section No. 1 in the northeast corner, and count- 
ing west and then east, and so on alternately to No. 36 
in the southeast corner. 

12. How Townships Are Numbered — Townships 
are numbered according to their position with refer- 
ence to a given north and south line and a given east 
and west line. 

13. Principal Meridian — Through a convenient 
point, a meridian line is surveyed for a considerable 
distance north and south. This is called a principal 
meridian. 

14. Base Line — Through the same initial point a 
line at right angles to the principal meridian is run for 
some distance east and west. This is called a base line. 

A series of lines parallel to the principal meridian 
and six miles apart where they cross the base line, and 
another series of lines six miles apart and parallel to 
the base line, will evidently form townships about six 
miles square. 

15. Range* — A series of townships on the same side 
of the base line and equally distant in number of town- 
ships from the principal meridian is called a range. 
Ranges arc described by their position east or west of 
the principal meridian. 



POLITICAL DIVISIOXS OF THE STATE 



38 



DIAGRAM A 
A TOWNSHIP AND ITS SECTIONS 



6 


5 


4 


3 


2 


1 


7 


8 


9 


10 


11 


12 


18 


17 


16 


15 


14 


13 


19 


20 


21 


22 


23 


24 


30 


29 


28 


27 


26 


25 


31 


32 


33 


34 


35 


36 



DIAGRAM B 

A SECTION SUBDIVIDED 





NEK 


SW/4 


* 

* 


* 


NEftop 

SE/4 


t 




ft 


S%°rSEV4 



1. A section is divided into four quarter sections, of 160 acres 
each, described by the points of the compass ; i.e., the northeast 
quarter = NE ±. 

2. A quarter section is further subdivided, and the subdivisions 
are also described with reference to the points of the compass. 

3. Describe the divisions marked *, *, f, \\, and give the area of 
each. 

It is suggested that other problems be given by the teacher until 
the pupils thoroughly understand the system of land surveys and 
designations. 



84 



THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 



Townships within a range are numbered from the 
base line, north and south. 



DIAGRAM C 

















\ 
































■-I 
Q 


4 


















3 














3 












ft 












#* 






u 

2 


2 
















vm 


VII 


VI 


V 


TV 


nr 


II 


I 


*I 


H 


hi 


IV 


V 


VI 


\n 


vm 










BA 


SE 




J 


1 




LI 


NE 
























< 


2 








t 






















o 


3 






























2 


4- 






4 
















# 








Q. 


5 

















































The description of townships with reference to a principal meridian 
and its base line; e.g., township 3 north in range VII. west of the 
given principal meridian ; township 4 south in range IV. east of the 
given principal meridian. 

In this way describe the townships marked *, **, f, ff. 

The first survey of Chicago for town lots in 1830 (p. 24) was de- 
scribed as follows: The south half of section 9 of township 39 north 
in range XIV. west of the third principal meridian. This is the area 
included by State, Kinzie, Desplaines, and Madison streets. 



16. Convergence of the Meridians — It was said 
that the two series of lines above described would form 
townships "about" six miles square. That these 
townships would not be exactly square is due to the 
fact that as the meridians run north they converge. 
Therefore it is evident that the east and west boundary 



POLITICAL DIVISIONS OF THE STATE 35 

lines of a township are not quite parallel, that the 
township is not quite square, and that no township 
will contain exactly thirty-six square miles. 

Further, it is evident that in only a part of the town- 
ships is it true that even the southern boundary line is 
six miles long. In the ranges lying north of the base 
line, for instance (Diagram C), only the townships 
resting on the base line have a six-mile southern line. 
The southern boundary of each other township in the 
range is shorter than the corresponding line of the 
township immediately south. 

If the survey should be carried on without regard 
to these facts, it is plain that the convergence of the 
meridians would, at a considerable distance north from 
the base line, result in making townships of very much 
less than thirty-six square miles, while if the southern 
ranges should begin six miles wide on the base line, 
the divergence of the meridians south would corre- 
spondingly increase the area of tin 1 townships on that 
side. 

To remedy these difficulties, the following plan is 
devised : 

17. Correction Parallels — Every twenty-four miles 
north of the base line, and every thirty miles south of 
it, parallels of latitude are drawn through the princi- 
pal meridian. These are called oorrection parallels, 
and extend east and west from the points at which 
they intersect the principal meridian. Each of these 
parallels forms a new base, on which are laid off the 
southern sides of the series of townships immediately 
north of it. As the full six-mile extent is used in lay- 
ing off these southern sides, it is evident that with 
each correction parallel the whole process begins over 



36 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

again. In this way the loss occasioned by the con- 
vergence of the parallels is prevented from going on 
perpetually increasing. 

18. Guide Meridians — As a further convenience, 
at every forty-eight miles on the base line, reckoning 
both ways from its intersection Avith the principal 
meridian, a new meridian line is surveyed north and 
south. These are called guide meridians. 

19. The Principal Meridians — The principal merid- 
ians from which the public land of the United States 
is surveyed are not at uniform distances apart, being 
drawn merely through such points as may be most 
convenient. 

The first principal meridian is the boundary line be- 
tween Ohio and Indiana, being drawn from the Ohio 
Kiver north on the line of 84° 51' longitude west from 
Greenwich. Ohio lands are surveyed from this line. 

The second principal meridian extends through In- 
diana, from the mouth of the Little Blue River to the 
northern boundary of the State, on the line of 86° 28' 
west longitude. From this line are surveyed the lands 
of Indiana and a part of those of eastern Illinois. 

The third principal meridian starts from the mouth 
of the Ohio River, and extends to the northern boun- 
dary of Illinois, on the line of 89° 10' 30'' west longi- 
tude. From this line are surveyed (1) all the lands of 
Illinois east of it, excepting those which are surveyed 
from the second principal meridian; and (2) all the 
Lands lying west of the third meridian but east of the 
Illinois River. 

The fourth principal meridian extends from the 
middle of the channel at the mouth of the Illinois 
Kiver north to the Canada boundary, on the line of 



POLITICAL DIVISIONS OF THE STATE 37 

( .M) 29' 56" west longitude. From this line are surveyed 
all the lands of Illinois wrest of the Illinois River and 
(on the north of that river) all the lands west of the 
third principal meridian. The fourth meridian is also 
used for AVisconsin and Minnesota surveys. 

Still farther west arc two other principal meridians, 
the fifth and the sixth. Others are named instead of 
being numbered — the Michigan meridian, the Talla- 
hassee meridian, the Montana meridian, lor instance. 
There are eighteen which are named. 

20. Illinois Base Lines — The base line of the third 
principal meridian, from which most of the land of 
Illinois is surveyed, crosses the State from the Wabash 
River in Wabash County to the Mississippi in St. Clair 
County. The base line of the fourth principal merid- 
ian extends from the Illinois River in Schuyler County 
to the Mississippi in Adams County. 

21. Illinois Surveys from Second Principal merid- 
ian — ft is only a narrow strip of towns and fractional 
towns at the eastern edge of the State which is sur- 
veyed from the second principal meridian. Its base line 
is on the same parallel as that of the third meridian. 

22. School Townships — It has been seen that in 
dividing counties the towns are to coincide with the 
townships of the United States survey as far as may 
be practicable. In many cases, however, the town 
and township lines do not coincide. The State school 
law, however, makes the Congressional township, and 
not the town, the unit of administration. Hence a 
school township always coincides with some Congres- 
sional township.* 

* Rev. Stat., c. 122, §30. 



38 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

23. Cities and Villages — The division of the State 
into counties and towns, as has been explained, is for 
convenience of local government, while the divisions 
made by the land survey are mainly for the purpose 
of identifying parcels of land when they are sold. As 
people come to live quite near one another, however, 
rather than on scattered farms, a different sort of gov- 
ernment becomes necessary from that which answers 
for counties and towns. For this reason the State law 
provides a plan for governing cities and villages, and 
certain areas are laid off and included within the limits 
so governed The only real difference between a city 
and a village is that the former usually has more peo- 
ple than the latter. 

A village is usually included within the limits of a 
town, if the county is divided into towns. A city 
may cover the whole or parts of several towns. 
Chicago, for instance, comprises within its limits 
seven entire towns of Cook County, and parts of 
others. 

We class cities and villages within the permanent 
political divisions of the State, because a given munici- 
pality being once formed it is not intended that it 
shall be Aviped out. Provisions are made in the law 
for extending the limits of cities and villages in order 
to keep pace with the spread of population, and in this 
way many of the cities, especially, have grown to a 
very great extent. 

24. Wards — A city council is empowered to divide 
the city into vmrds for further convenience. The 
ward should, perhaps, strictly be classed among the 
temporary political divisions, but it is put here for 
convenience. The number of wards in a city may be 



POLITICAL DIVISIONS OF THE STATE 39 

one-half the number of aldermen to which the city is 
entitled, but in no case may exceed 35.* 

25. Park and Drainage Districts— The .law of the 
State provides for the formation of park districts and 
of drainage districts, the affairs of which in each case 
are controlled by a board of commissioners. These 
boards are, so far as their immediate purposes are con- 
cerned, quite independent of other local authorities. + 

TEMPORARY DIVISIONS 

20. There is a second class of political divisions of 
the State which are intended as a rule for but a single 
purpose of government, and which may be changed 
quite frequently. These we may call temporary divi- 
sions. 

27. Congressional Districts — The State is entitled 
to a certain number of members in the Federal House of 
Representatives, the number depending on the popula- 
tion of Illinois compared with the total population of 
the United States. After each decennial national cen- 
sus Congress passes a new law flying the number of 
representatives to which each State is entitled. Un- 
der the law based on the census of 1890 Illinois has 
twenty-two. The act of Congress requires that these 
shall be elected in separate districts, and permits the 
State Legislature to form the districts under certain 
conditions (p. 197-8). These conditions are, that the 
several districts shall be compact and composed of 
contiguous territory, and that as nearly as may be 
practicable they shall have an equal number of in- 
habitants. 

* Rev. Stat., c. 24, §§ 51, 30. f JRev. Stat,, c. 105, c. 42. 



40 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

Districts are formed by joining several contiguous 
counties or by dividing counties. After each national 
reapportionment of congressmen the Legislature makes 
a totally new division. 

28. State Senatorial Districts — The Upper House 
of the State Legislature of Illinois contains fifty-one 
members. The State Constitution requires that these 
shall be elected in districts, and that the Legislature 
shall apportion the State into these fifty-one districts 
every ten years — i.e., after the decennial census (111. 
Const., Art. VI., § 6). The Constitution also requires 
that the districts shall be formed of compact and con- 
tiguous territory, and that they shall contain, as nearly 
as practicable, an equal number of inhabitants. Coun- 
ties may not be divided between different districts, ex- 
cepting counties of so large population that they are 
each entitled to two or more senators. Eo district 
which contains an entire county can contain a part of 
any other county. Cook is the only county which is 
divided under the present law. 

29. Judicial Districts — Supreme Court — The Su- 
preme Court of Illinois consists of seven judges, elected 
by the people in as many judicial districts. The State 
Legislature is empowered to alter the districts at will, 
subject to the same limitations as in the case of sena- 
torial districts, and to a further limitation as to the 
time of alteration (111. Const., Art. VI., §§ 2, 5).* 

Until 1897 the State was divided into three grand 
divisions, in each of which successively the Supreme 
Court met. These grand divisions were abolished, 
however, by act of the Legislature in 1897, and the 

* Rev. Stat., c. 37, § 2. 



POLITICAL DIVISIONS OF THE STATE 41 

Supreme Court now meets only at Springfield (111. 
Const, Art. VI., §4).* 

30. Judicial Districts—Circuit Courts — The m wt 
class of courts below the Supreme Court is the Circuit 
Court. Cook County forms one judicial circuit (111. 
Const., Art. A' I., §§ L3, L5).f The Legislature lias 
the power to form the rest of the State into judi- 
cial circuits, provided thai the total number shall not 
exceed one circuit for every one hundred thousand of 
population in the State. The circuits must be of con- 
tiguous and^ompact territory, and as nearly as possi- 
ble equal in population. County lines must not be 
divided. 

The present law divides the state outside of Cook 
County into thirteen circuits. In each of these cir- 
cuits are elected three circuit judges, who hold court 
successively at the various county seats within the 
circuit. 

31. Election Precincts and Districts— For conven- 
ience of elections counties are divided into precincts. 
In counties under town government the town is the 
precinct. In other counties it is the duty of the county 
board to determine the precincts. 

If any precinct has more than 4.">0 voters it is the 
duty of the county board to divide such precinct into 
districts, in such way that each district shall contain 
as nearly 400 voters as may be practicable, and in no 
case more than 450. Districts must be composed of 
contiguous territory, and must be as compact as the 
convenience of the voters will allow. In the month 
of July, after each general election held in November, 

* Rev. Stat., c. 37, § 1. 



42 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

the county board may make a readjustment of election 
districts, whenever it appears that any precinct or dis- 
trict contains more than 450 voters. * 

32. School Districts — The school township (p. 156) 
is managed by a board of school trustees. It is in the 
power of this board to divide the township into dis- 
tricts, for the convenience of school attendance, t On 
petition of the legal voters interested, the board may 
change such districts as may be most convenient. J If 
the board denies the request of the petitioners, appeal 
may be taken to the county superintendent, Avho may 
make the change if he thinks best. 

33. City Districts — In cities whose schools are con- 
trolled by a board of education the division into dis- 
tricts is in the power of that board. In this case no 
petition by the voters is necessary, and there is no 
appeal to the county superintendent. 

* Rev. Stat., c. 46, §§ 29, 30. f Rev. Stat., c. 122, £§ 75-78. 
% Rev. Stat., c. 122, §§83-85. 



CHAPTER IV 

THE STATE GOVERNMENT— THE 
CONSTITUTION 

1. The Constitution of Illinois provides a plan for 
the government of the State To understand this 
plan, then, we must first of all consult the < Jonstitution. 

As we have seen (p. 22), the State has had three 
Constitutions. The one now in force was drawn up 
by a convention which was elected by the people in 
1869, and met at the State capital, Springfield, De- 
cember L3, is<l ( .>, to May L3, L870. The Constitution 
which this convention proposed was submitted to the 
voters of the State at an election held for that purpose 
July 2, 1870. At the election there were L54,227 votes 
for the proposed Constitution, and : '>.'>. 44: 5 votes against 
it. Thus it was accepted by the voters and became the 
State Constitution in place of the one which had been 
the law since 1848, 

THE PREAMBLE 

2. In the Constitution of the United States, and in 
that of each of the States, there is a sort of preface 
called a preamble. In fact, however, this is by no 
means either a preface or a preamble — each of which 
terms implies something not essential, the omission of 
which would be unimportant. 



4 4: THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

3. Its Essential Part — the Enacting- Clause — The 
preamble of a constitution contains that which is vitally 
important — the enacting clause, as it is usually entitled. 
In the Illinois preamble the enacting clause is as fol- 
lows : " We, the people of the State of Illinois . . . 
do ordain and establish this Constitution for the State 
of Illinois." This is all that is really necessary. It 
contains a statement of four important facts : (1) Who 
it is that make the law — the people {i.e., the voters) ; 
(2) what it is which the people make law — this Con- 
stitution, {i.e., the one drawn up by the convention of 
1869-70) ; (3) for whom the Constitution is adopted — 
the State of Illinois {i.e., all the people within the State 
boundaries) ; (4) the act by which the Constitution be- 
comes law — the people ordain and establish it {i.e., it is 
the will of the people that it shall be law). 

4. Its Non-essential Parts — The remaining clauses 
in the preamble are legally non-essential, and are in- 
serted to indicate the spirit and purposes with which 
the Constitution was adopted. 

5. The Recognition of God — One of them contains 
a reference to God as the giver of all blessings. The 
Federal Constitution of the United States and the Con- 
stitutions of many of the States contain no such clause. 
There is a difference of opinion as to its importance. 
Some favor it because it is a public and formal recogni- 
tion of religion. Some hold it unnecessary to embody 
such recognition in a legal document. Others oppose 
it on the ground that religion should be a personal and 
not a political matter. 

The remaining non-essential clauses, almost exactly 
copied from the Federal Constitution, express the pur- 
poses of the fundamental law — " to form a more perfect 



STATE GOVERNMENT— CONSTITUTION \;> 

government, establish justice, insure domestic tran- 
quillity, provide for the common defence, promote the 
general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to 
ourselves and our posterity." 

The expression of these purposes, as has been ex- 
plained, is not Legally essential. The preamble to the 
Constitutions of Louisiana adopted in 1.84:5 and in 
L852, for instance, is merely this: k - We, the people of 
Louisiana, do ordain and establish this Constitution." 
This is merely an enacting clause. 

THE TERRITORY 

0. Boundaries Article I. defines the boundaries of 
the State. It will be noticed that a part of this bound- 
ary line runs alone- the middle of Lake Michigan, an- 
other part along the middle of the Mississippi River, 
and a third part not along the middle, but along the 
northwestern shore, of the Ohio River. Usually when 
bodies of water like lakes or rivers separate different 
political divisions, the boundary line runs in the mid- 
dle of the lake or stream -i.e., midway between the 
banks in case of a Lake, in the middle of the channel or 
current of a river. But when Virginia ceded to the 
general government the land which Genera] Clarke 
conquered, the act of cession read : " The tract of coun- 
try within the limits of the Virginia Charter . . . 
northwest of the Ohio Kiver." Of course, then, this 
gift included no part of the river itself. Hence the 
northern line of Kentucky (which was a part of Vir- 
ginia until 1792) follows low-water mark on the north 
bank of the Ohio. 

The proviso at the end of Article I. relates to the 



46 TIIE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

fact that Illinois controls no part of the Ohio River 
except by special agreement with Kentucky. * 

THE PEOPLE 

7. The People for whom the Constitution was 
adopted, and who are subject to it as law, are all the 
people within the State boundaries. Those who live in 
the State are subject to the Constitution all the time, 
and people visiting, or for any purpose temporarily 
residing, in Illinois, are subject to the Illinois Consti- 
tution and laws while here. Hence it is that all the 
people within the State are bound to obey its funda- 
mental law. 

8. The State — When Ave speak of " the State of 
Illinois " we may mean one of three different things. 

We may mean the land comprised within the State 
boundaries. This is the geographical sense of the term. 

We may mean all the people within these bounda- 
ries. It is partly in this sense that the preamble sa} T s 
that the Constitution is ordained and established " for 
the State of Illinois." 

We may mean merely the voters in the State. This 
is what is meant in the preamble by its opening 
words : " We, the people of the State of Illinois." 
The people who decided at the polls that the Consti- 
tution proposed by the Convention of 1869-70 should 
be adopted were those who under existing laws were 
entitled to vote. So, when we say that " the State of 
Illinois" adopts a Constitution, we refer to the voters. 

9. The Political People — For convenience, we may 
call the voters the political people. They determine 

*Rev. Stat., p. 23. 



sta te GO i 'i-:nxMi>:\r- < oxstitution 47 

what shall be the Constitution. They elect the prin- 
cipal officers of the government, as we shall see later. 
Thus they decide; the important political cjuestions 
which have to be settled. 

lO. Qualifications of Voters — The Constitution 
prescribes the qualifications of voters. This is merely 
another way of saying that the Constitution defines 
the political people. The qualifications in question 
are found in Article VII. On examination they will 
be found to be four — citizenship, sex, age, inhabitancy. 

A citizen of the United States is any person "born 
or naturalized in the United States and subject to the 
jurisdiction thereof " i U. 8. ( Constitution, Amdt. X I V.. 
Sec. 1). In some States persons of foreign birth are 
allowed to vote if they have taken out their first pa- 
pers preliminary to naturalization (Pt. I., p. 27). Of 
course, such persons are not yet citizens, and are still 
subjects of the country in which they were born. But 
no person who owes allegiance to a foreign govern- 
ment is permitted to vote in Illinois. This should be 
the law in every State, and probably will be. 

Male citizens of the United States, above the age of 
twenty-one years, who fulfil the other conditions, are 
entitled to vote at all elections.* This does not imply 
that women may not vote at any elections, and the 
State law permits women to vote for school officers, 
regents of the State University, county superintend- 
ents of schools, and school trustees. Many people be- 
lieve that women ought to vote at all elections on the 
same terms as men, and several States (Colorado, 
Utah, Wyoming) grant such permission. 

*Rev. Stat, c. 46, §332. 



48 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

The age of twenty-one is that long established hy 
law as the period at which a young man reaches his 
majority. His previous years are those of his minor- 
ity. A minor is not wholly independent, and is not 
capable of performing certain legal acts, like making 
a contract. This, then, seems a convenient age for 
acquiring the right of suffrage along with other legal 
rights. 

The requirement of residence is that to he entitled 
to vote at a given election one should have resided in 
the State one year, in the county ninety days, and in 
the election district thirty days next preceding such 
election. In order to vote intelligently on State ques- 
tions, it is plain that usually one will need to live in 
the State long enough to know something about those. 
questions ; and in order that one's right to vote may 
be well understood it is necessary that the residence 
in county and district may be long enough for the in- 
tending voter to be known by his neighbors. 

Sections 4 and 5 (111. Const., Art. VII.) make some 
special limitations with regard to deciding what con- 
stitutes residence. 

The remaining provisions of Section 1, in Article 
VII., are merely for the purpose of not disfranchising 
any one who was permitted to vote under the preced- 
ing Constitution. 

11. Domicile — One's residence is the place of his 
home — where he lives. The legal term for this place 
is the domicile. But as people, especially in our coun- 
try, are frequently moving about from place to place, 
sometimes for business, sometimes for mere pleasure, 
it is not always easy to decide where the real home is. 
As a practical way of settling the question, it is usu- 



STATE GOVERNMENT—CONSTITUTION ±<.) 

ally held that one's domicile is the place where hie is 
living without having in mind a definite time for leav- 
ing it. 

J>ut men who are in the service of the Federal gov- 
ernment, whether as soldiers or Bailors or in the civil 
service, are liable at any time to be sent to any place 
where the government needs them, entirely irrespective 
of their own wishes. Under the Constitution of Illi- 
nois sneli persons neither gain nor Lose domicile in the 
State by reason of government service. 

12. Infamous Crimes — In Section 7 there is a further 
limitation of the right to vote — that right being denied 
to any persons convicted of an Infamous crime. By as 
infamous crime is meant one the penalty for which is 
imprisonment in a penitentiary or death. 

13. Method of Toting — As the people — i.e., the po- 
litical people — are the source of all law, it is important 
that the method of ascertaining their will should be 
carefully guarded. It is the American theory that the 
majority shall rule — that the will of a majority shall 
be considered to be the will of all. But tor many pur- 
poses it is thought just as well that a majority — which 
is not always easy to secure 1 when there are several 
propositions or candidates in question — should not be 
required, and that a mere plurality shall suffice. 
Whether it is a majority or a plurality which is sought, 
it is necessary that the people should cast their votes 
in such a way, and that when cast they should be 
counted and reported in such a way, that there can 
be no doubt as to the exact facts. 

The Constitution provides (Art, VII., § 2) that all 
votes shall be by ballot. In the old times, both in 
England and in the colonies, a very different method 
4 



50 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

was practised. A list of the voters was prepared, and 
at the time set for voting each one came in person 
before the election officers, answered to his name, and 
gave his vote audibly. This is called the viva voce 
vote. Of course it was publicly known just how every 
man voted. This fact made it easy to bribe or to in- 
timidate voters, and to prevent these results the secret 
ballot has taken the place of viva voce voting. 

14. The Australian Ballot — Under the laws as 
they now exist in Illinois it is very easy for any voter 
to cast his vote in entire secrecy. Care is also taken 
to insure both accuracy and honesty in counting the 
votes and in reporting the totals. The system of vot- 
ing is commonly called the Australian system, as it 
was devised and first used in Australia. 

The essentials of the Australian system of voting are 
these : the ballots are furnished by the government, 
none other being permitted ; the voter while marking 
his ballot stands in a little booth behind a curtain, so 
that no one can see what names he marks ; no election- 
eering is allowed Avithin a hundred feet of the polling 
place.* 

15. Nominations — In order to print the ballots in 
time for the election, political parties must make their 
nominations for the various offices early enough to file 
thirty days before the election. Nominations for 
offices within a county are filed with the county clerk, 
others with the secretary of state. 

Nominations are usually made by political conven- 
tions. Any party which at the last preceding general 
election cast two per cent, of the votes is entitled to 



*Rev. Stat., c. 46, §§ 288-323. 



STATE 00 VERNMENT— CONSTITUTION f,l 

have the names of its candidates on the official ballot. 
Other nominations may be made also by petitions 
signed by a reasonable number of persona — 1,000 in 
case of a State office, and for other offices a number 

proportionally less. Such nominations are entitled to 
a place on the ballot. 

16. Toting — The names of candidates are arranged 
on the ballot in columns, those of one political party 
being in a single column, headed by the party name. 
Before this name is a small circle, and before the name 
of each candidate is a small square. The voter who 
wishes to vote for the entire ticket of a party places 
a cross (X) in the proper circle : otherwise he places a 
cross in the square preceding the name of each candi- 
date for whom he wishes to vote. He may if he 
chooses write in the name of a new candidate and 
place a cross before it. After being marked the ballot 
is folded and placed in a box which is in charge of the 
election officers. 

A sample ballot (in part) is appended: 

O DEMOCRATIC O REPUBLICAN O PROHIBITION 

For Governor For Governor For Govt; 

1 John M. Palmer Joseph W. Fifkk David II. Harts 

For Lieutenant-Governor For Lieutenant-Governor For Lieutenant- Governor 
I Andrew J. Bell Lyman 1?. Kay | Joseph L. Whitlock 

For Secretary of State For Secretary of State For Secretary of State 

Newell D. Rich I. N. Pearson James R. Hanna 

17. The Voting- Machine— A very curious voting 
machine has been invented, which may take the place 



52 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

of fcfoe Australian ballot as above described. The 

machine is placed within a booth, so that the voter can 
indicate his choice in private. The names of candi- 
dates are arranged on the face of the machine just as 
on an Australian ballot. In place of the circle and 
squares there are little knobs. By pressing on these 
knobs the voter records within the machine his vote, 
either for his entire party ticket, or for individual 
candidates, as he may prefer. Pressing on the knobs 
also locks the machine, so that no other vote can be 
recorded until the voter has left the booth. When the 
election time has expired the machine is locked, and 
no more voting can be done. The election officers 
then open a door at the back, and there they find an 
exact record of the number of votes cast for each can- 
didate. This machine secures entire accuracy in esti- 
mating the returns, and saves very much time. It 
often takes the election officers hours to count the 
Australian ballots, while the machine keeps tally as 
fast as the voting is done. 

HOW A CONSTITUTION IS MADE OR ALTERED 

18. The Two Processes — Making a new Constitu- 
tion, and making an alteration in an existing one, im- 
ply two (piite distinct processes. One is to draw up 
a Constitution, or an amendment, in a definite form. 
The other is to decide that the Constitution or amend- 
ment thus drafted shall be adopted as law — ratified, as 
it is usually expressed. 

Alteration of an existing Constitution may be com- 
paratively slight or (piite extensive. The process em- 
ployed in our States usually differs accordingly. 



STA TIC GO I r ERNMENT— CONSTITUTION :,:) 

11). Conventions — Forforminga new Constitution. 
or for extensive amendmenl of an existing one, it is 
customary to bold a convention. This is a body com- 
posed of delegates elected for the purpose by the voters 
of the State. 

20. The Legislature — Comparatively slighl amend- 
ments are usually drafted by the State Legislature. 
For this purpose it is thought thai a State convention 
is needless, both on account of the expense and of the 
time necessarily involved. 

21. The People Ratify — In either ease, however, it 

is almost uniformly the practice to submit propositions 
of amendment, whether drafted by a convention or 
by the State Legislature, to a vote of the people for 
ratification. It is this ratification which makes the 
proposed amendments law. 

22. Ratification by tlie People not always Re- 
quired — In some States, however, the work of con- 
ventions has not been submitted to the people, on the 
ground that in electing a convention tin 4 people vir- 
tually entrust that body with full power to act. The 
first Constitution of Illinois was adopted in this way 
(p. 22). 

The Illinois Constitution of 1848, however, required 
that for making a new Constitution a convention 
should be held, and that the results of its action 
should be submitted to the people for their approval 
That is the way in which the present Constitution 
was adopted. 

2«*5. An Illinois Convention — A constitutional con- 
vention may be held in Illinois, provided that the 
State Legislature, by a vote of two-thirds of the 
members of each house, decides it to be necessary ; and 



54 TEE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

provided further that at the next general election a 
majority of those voting* at that election approve 
(111. Const., Art. XIV., § 1). The Constitution or the 
amendments proposed by the convention are then sub- 
mitted to the people at a special election held for that 
purpose, and require for ratification a majority of 
those voting at that election. 

24. Amendments — Amendments may also be made 
on proposition of the Legislature by a vote of two- 
thirds of the members of each house, provided that 
such proposed amendments receive the approval of a 
majority of the voters at the next general election 
(111. Const., Art. XIV., § 2). There are two important 
restrictions on this second method of amendment. The 
first is that amendments may not be proposed to more 
than one article of the Constitution at the same ses- 
sion of the Legislature. The second is that amend- 
ments may not be proposed to the same article oftener 
than once in four years. These restrictions make it 
very difficult to amend the Illinois Constitution at all. 

THE STATE GOVERNMENT AND ITS BRANCHES 

25. Government Defined — Government is the 
agency of the people for performing certain duties 
which are necessary to the general welfare. Among 
these duties are the making of laws, the prevention 
and punishment of crime, decision as to the rights of 
people with reference to one another, and the protec- 
tion of people in their rights. For the performance of 
these and other similar duties, the Constitution of Illi- 
nois provides for the formation of a government, and 
cut rusts to it, in its several branches, various powers. 



STATE GOVERNMENT— CONSTITUTION 

26. Tli<> Branches — It is a common principle of 
political science in the United States that government 
should be separated into three branches, or depart- 
ments: the legislative, the executive, and the judiciary. 

The legislative branch of the government makes 
laws, the executive administers the laws, and the 
judiciary decides what the laws mean, and what are 
the rights and duties of individuals under the laws. 
The three are sometimes called the law-makmg, the 
hi n>-< rift ■>/-<■/ "////, and the law-interpreting branches of 
government. 

The Illinois Constitution forbids any one of these 
departments to perform duties which naturally belong 
to one of the others, unless the Constitution itself per- 
mits (Art. IIL). 



CHAPTER V 

THE STATE GOVERNMENT— THE 
LEGISLATURE 

STRUCTURE 

1. The Legislative Department (or Legislature) 
is called the General Assembly. It consists of two 
distinct bodies, the Senate and the House of Repre- 
sentatives (111. Const., Art. IV., § 1). They are some- 
times called the Upper House and the Lower House. 
No measure can become a law unless it receives the 
approval of both houses. 

2. Bicameral Legislatures — A legislature which 
consists of two houses is called bicameral (from the 
Latin "bi," two, and "camera," chamber; the houses, 
as we call them, are called chambers in Europe). A 
legislature of but one house is called unicameral 
("uni" is the Latin for one). The Congress of the 
United States and the legislatures of all the States 
are bicameral. We shall see later that for the Illinois 
counties and cities there are unicameral legislative 
bodies. 

3. Advantages — The main advantage of a bicam- 
eral legislature is the fact that every plan for a law 
lias to be debated and voted in two separate bodies. 
In this way any defects which are overlooked in one 
house are likely to be detected in the other. On the 



STATE GOVERNMENT— LEGtSLA TUBE 57 

other hand, a unicameral Legislature is less expensive 
and can do its work in less time. 

4. Differences in t li<- Structure of the Two 

Houses In order to make the two houses quite dif- 
ferent from each other, they have not the same num- 
ber of members, the same term of office, and not quite 
the same constituency. The Senate in Illinois has 
one-third as many members as the Lower House. The 
senators are chosen for four years, the representa- 
tives for two years. Each senator is chosen by a 
majority (or plurality) of the votes in his district, 
while the representatives are chosen in accordance 
with a peculiar provision called minority representa- 
tion, which will he explained Later. 

The powers and duties of the two houses are very 
nearly the same. 

5. Apportionment— There are 51 senators and 153 
representatives in Illinois. Each senator is chosen 
from a district, which consists of one or more counties 
(or parts of a county). It is the duty of the Legisla- 
ture each ten years (after the census) to make a new 
apportionment of Senate districts, making them as 
nearly equal in population as possible. In order to 
do this, the population of the State, as ascertained by 
the last census, is divided by the number of senators. 
51. The quotient is the senatorial ratio, and the popu- 
lation of each district should be as nearly equal to the 
ratio as practicable. Very pi >pulous counties { like Co< >k) 
have to be divided, and have two or more senators. 

6. Gerrymandering' — In arranging Senate districts 
it is often possible to put counties together in such a 
way that one political party has an advantage, and is 
likely to have a majority in each house of the Legisla- 



58 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

ture even if the other party has a majority in the State 
at Large. This is called gerrymandering (from Elbridge 
Gerry 3 once governor of Massachusetts, who has been 
credited — erroneously, it is now thought — with devis- 
ing the scheme). 

In order to make gerrymandering difficult, the Con- 
stitution requires Senate districts to be formed of con- 
tiguous and compact territory, bounded by county 
lines, and to contain as nearly as practicable an equal 
number of inhabitants (111. Const., Art. IY., § 6). 

7. Proportional Representation — These require- 
ments, however, do not make gerrymandering impos- 
sible. There are some who think that the only way to 
prevent it, and the only way to ensure fair representa- 
tion of different opinions among the people, is to abolish 
the senatorial districts altogether. Members of the 
Leg i stature would then be elected by the whole State on 
a general ticket, and each political party would be en- 
titled to such a proportion of the whole number as the 
vote cast by that party is of the whole vote cast in the 
State. This is the plan of proportional representation. 
There are several different Avays suggested for Avorking 
out its details. 

8. General Elections — A general election for the 
choice of members of the Legislature is held on the 
Tuesday after the first Monday in November of every 
even -numbered year. The first under this plan was 
held in 1872 (111'. Const., Art. IV., § 2). 

9. The Senate Changed Gradually — At the elec- 
tion in a year the number of which is divisible by four, 
the senators from the odd-numbered districts, twenty- 
six in number, are chosen. At the intervening elec- 
tion, the senators from the even-numbered districts, 



STATE GOVERNMENT— LEGISLATULi: 59 

twenty-five in number, are chosen. In this way about 

half the Senate is renewed each t wo years. This makes 
the Senate a continuous body. 

10. The Lower House Changed Totally — At each 
general election the entire number of representatives 

are chosen, three from each Senate <listriet. As the 

term is two years, it is seen that the House of Repre- 
sentatives, unlike I he Senate, is wholly renewed at 
each election. 

11. Minority Representation — The three represen- 
tatives chosen in each Senate district are elected on 
a genera] ticket in that district, in the following 
manner : 

Each voter has three votes. lie may cast one vote 

for each of three candidates, or two votes for one can- 
didate and one for another, or all three votes lor one 
candidate, or one and one-half votes for each of two 
candidates. By this means it is intended that no poli- 
tical party shall he able to elect all three of the candi- 
dates in any onedistrict. Thus is secured representation 
for the minority party (111. Const., Art. IV.. §§ «'•. 7. v >. 

In order to put the above system in motion, the ( '(in- 
stitution of 1 S7<» made some special provisions, which 
will be found in Article IV.. Section <i. and in the 
Schedule, Sections 13, 1-1, L5, and 1<>. 

If a vacancy occurs in either house, by the death or 
resignation of a member, or otherwise, a special elec- 
tion is held to fill that vacancy. 

MEMBERS 

12. Qualifications of Members — The qualifications 

for membership in the Legislature are age, citizenship, 
and residence. A senator must be at least twenty-live 



60 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

years old, and a representative at least twenty-one. 
No person can be a member of either house who is not 
a citizen of the United States ; who has not been for 
five years a resident of the State, and who has not 
been for at least two years next preceding his election 
a resident of the district in which he is chosen. 

13. Disqualifications — There are some things which 
disqualify persons for membership in the Legislature, 
even if the above qualifications are possessed. These 
things are the holding of certain public office under 
the State or the United States (Art. IV., § 3) ; infamous 
crime (Art. IV., § 4) ; or the non-settlement of accounts 
with the State on the part of a holder of public money 
(Art. IV, § i). 

14. Oath — ISTo person is entitled to sit as a member 
of either house until he has taken an oath binding him 
to support the Constitution of the United States and 
the Constitution of this State, and declaring that he 
has given no bribe in connection with his election, and 
that he has received and will receive no bribe in con- 
nection with his official duties. False swearing in this 
case, or violation of the oath, is punished by depri- 
vation of membership in the Legislature, and disquali- 
fication thereafter to hold any office in the State (Art. 
IV, § 5). 

15. Privileges of Members — Members of the Legis- 
lature are entitled to freedom from arrest, to freedom 
of speech, and to compensation for their services. 

While going to a meeting of the General Assembly, 
while attending the same, or while returning home, 
members may not be arrested, unless for treason, fel- 
ony, or bread i of the peace (Art. IV., § 14). 

Treason may be against the United States or against 



STATE GOVERNMENT— LEGISLATURE 61 

the State. In either case it consists in taking part in 
actual warfare against the United States (or the State), 
or in giving aid to the enemies of the same. 

A felony is about the same as an infamous crime. 
i.e., one punishable by death or imprisonment in the 
penitentiary. 

Breach of the peace means disorderly conduct, like 
an assault, or riot. 

The reason for exempting members from arrest <>n 
other grounds is to insure their attendance at sessions 
of the Legislature, and especially to prevent any one's 
being kept away by arrest on fictitious charges, in 
order that his vote may not be cast for or against a 
particular measure. 

Freedom of speech is secured by the provision that 
for any speech or debate in either house members 
"shall not he questioned in any other place" (111. 
Const., Art. IV., § 14). This means that Legal proceed- 
ings for libel shall not be brought against a member 
for anything said on the floor of the Legislature. It is 
by no means intended that members may not he 
criticised for their speeches and votes. In fact, they 
are criticised very freely, both in private conversation 
and in the newspapers. 

16. Salary — Members of each house are paid a salary 
of $1,000 for each regular session, and five dollars a 
day for each special session; "mileage," at the rate of 
ten cents for each mile necessarily travelled in o-oinff 
to and returning from a session ; and fifty dollars at 
each session for stationery and incidentals (111. Const., 
Art. IY., § 21).* This compensation may be changed 

*Rev. Stat., c. 63, § 15. 



02 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

by law, but the change cannot take effect until the 
expiration of the General Assembly which makes it. 
The reason for this limitation is obvious. 

17. Disabilities of Members — Members of each 
house are prohibited from receiving any civil appoint- 
ment from the governor or Legislature during the term 
for which said members are elected, and from being 
interested in any contract authorized by law during 
said term and for one year thereafter. 

POWERS OF THE HOUSES 

18. The houses taken separately have certain powers. 

19. Decide Election Disputes — Each house is the 
sole judge of all contests relating to the election of 
members and to their qualifications. 

If it is claimed that there has been fraud at an 
election, or error in reporting the results, so that a per- 
son is officially reported as elected who in fact was not 
elected, the person who claims to be unjustly deprived 
of membership enters a formal notice of contest. The 
matter is referred to a committee, which hears the 
evidence on both sides and reports to the house its 
opinion and a recommendation. The house then votes 
to assign the seat to one or the other contestant, as the 
case may be. From this decision of the house there is 
no appeal. 

In like manner each house decides whether any per- 
son who is elected has the constitutional qualifications 
for membership. 

This power of the houses to sit in judgment without 
appeal in all eases relating to the validity of member- 
ship is found also in the Congress of the United States, 



STATE GOVERNMENT— LEGISLATURE G3 

and was copied originally from the custom of the 
British House of Commons. That body, however, has 

changed its methods in this respect. Experience 
showed that the decision of the house in eases of eon- 
tested elections was usually determined by political 
reasons rather than by the merits of the case. Since 
L868, therefore, the power to decide contests over 
election to the House of Commons has been vested in 
the courts of law. It has proved to be a much better 
way of securing justice. 

20. Expulsion — Each house has the power to expel 
any one of its own members. Expulsion, however, 
requires a vote of two-thirds of all the in em hers of 
the house. 

21. Organization — Each house has the power to 
effect its own organization, by electing such officers as 
may be authorized by law. The only exception to 
this is the fact that the Constitution makes the lien- 
tenant-governor the presiding officer of the Sen.it e. 
He is not a senator, and has no vote except in case of 
a tie. The presiding officer of the House of Repre- 
sentatives is called the speaker. He is elected by the 
house from their own number, and has a vote like 
any other member. He has no casting vote in case 
of a tie. 

When a new General Assembly meets for the hist 
time the secretary of state (p. 86) calls the House of 
Kepresentatives to order, and presides until a presiding 
officer is elected by the house. On this occasion the 
order of proceedings is usually as follows : 

The members are gathered in the hall of the house. 
The secretary of state takes the chair and calls the 
house to order. Prayer is offered, and the roll is 



64 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

called from an official list prepared by the State 
canvassing" officers (p. 111). The house then elects a 
temporary speaker, and the secretary of state retires. 
Other temporary officers are elected, and the members 
take the oath prescribed by the Constitution. Perma- 
nent officers are then elected, and the house adjourns, 
often for several days, until the speaker shall have had 
time to appoint the committees. 

22. Officers — The officers of the house authorized 
by law are the speaker, who presides ; the chief clerk, 
who keeps a record of the proceedings ; three assist- 
ants for the clerk ; the doorkeeper and three assistants, 
who keep order among the visitors in the galleries 
and lobbies, see that no unauthorized persons enter, 
and otherwise aid the house ; the postmaster and one 
assistant, who attend to the mail for members; the 
engrossing clerk and two assistants, who write out 
(" engross " on parchment) proposed laws when so 
directed by the house. There are sometimes other 
officers. 

Employees (111. Const., Art. Y., § 24), usually ap- 
pointed by the speaker, are clerks for committees, 
policemen, pages (boys who carry messages in the 
house), and the like. 

23. Committees — Committees, nearly fifty in num- 
ber, are appointed by the speaker. Each committee 
consists of several members, usually an odd number, 
and has charge of certain kinds of business. Every 
proposed law (hill, it is called) when offered to the 
house by some member, is at once referred to its appro- 
priate committee — tax bills to the Committee on Fi- 
nance, for instance. If the committee reports the bill, 
it is then considered by the house in what is known as 



STATE GOVERNMENT— LEGISLA TURE 65 

" Committee of the Whole." This is the entire bouse, 
with soi n(3 member In the chair in place of the speaker. 
Eere it is generally discussed. When a vote is taken 
by the Committee of the Whole, the committee rises, 
the speaker resumes the chair, and the bouse, having 
heard the report of the Committee of the Whole then 
debates and takes a final vote on the measure. 

Most bills introduced never leave the committee 
room. Bills reported by standi, g committees are often 
passed without material change. It is obvious, there- 
fore, that committees have mucb power, and that the 
Speaker by his selection of committees can have great 
influence over Legislation. 

24. Organization of Senate — The organization of 
the Senate is quite similar to that of the bouse. Being 
a continuous body, however, there is always a chair- 
man and a set of officers and employees, so that little 
time is wasted in preliminary organization. ( >f course 
these officers and employees are changed from time to 
time. The recording officer of the Senate is called the 
secretary, and there is a serjeant-at-arms instead of a 
doorkeeper. It is customary for the Senate to elect a 
president j>r<> tempore^ to take the chair in case the 
lieutenant-governor is absent. 

25. Rules — Each house has the power of making 
its own rules of order. These rules are based on ordi- 
nary parliamentary law, adapted to the circumstances 
and needs of the Legislature. 

26. Impeachment — The House of Representatives 
has the sole power of impeachment, and the Senate has 
the sole power of trying all impeachments (111. Const., 
Art. IV., § 2-i). 

Impeachment is a formal accusation brought against 
5 



66 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

a public officer, charging him with some misdemeanor 
in office. The governor and all civil officers of the 
State (i.e., all except military officers) are liable to this 
proceeding (111. Const., Art. V., § 15). But another 
method is provided for taking action against judicial 
officers who misbehave (p. 70) (Art. VI., § 30). 

A majority of all the representatives is required for 
a vote of impeachment. If such a vote is had, the 
house then appoints a committee to conduct the case 
before the Senate (Art. VI., § 24). The latter body acts 
as a court for the trial of the case, the senators taking 
a special oath for the occasion. If the governor is on 
trial, the chief justice presides, as of course the lieu- 
tenant-governor is an interested party (p. 82). For 
conviction a vote of two-thirds of all the senators is 
required. No further penalty may be inflicted than 
removal from office and disqualification to hold office 
thereafter under the State. However, such convicted 
officer is still liable to be tried and punished by a court 
of law. Thus, the governor might commit murder. 
The Senate, on impeachment proceedings, might con- 
vict him and remove him from office. Then, as a 
]»'i vate citizen, he might be arrested, tried, and punished 
for the crime, under the laws of the State. 

27. Appointments — The Senate also acts as an ad- 
visory council to the governor for making certain ap- 
pointments — such as the Constitution or laws of the 
State prescribe to be made by the governor " with the 
advice and consent of the Senate " (111. Const., Art. IV., 
§ 10). 



STATE GOVERNMENT— LEGISLATUHi: 67 

THE LEGISLATURE AS A WHOLE 

28. Regular sessions The Constitution requires a 

biennial session of the General Assembly, the session to 
begin at noon on the Wednesday nexl after the first 
Monday of the year following the general election. 
The regular sessions of the Legislature, then, tall in 
the odd-numbered years (Art. IV., § 9). 

2*>. Quorum — A quorum of either house is a ma- 
jority of all the members elected (Art. [V., § 9). 

By a quorum is meant the leasl Dumber which may 
be present in order that business may he done. The 
Congress of the United States and the Legislatures of 
all the States have the same quorum as that in Illinois. 

3(). Special Sessions — A special session of the Gen- 
eral Assembly may be convened by the governor at 
any time which be may think proper, f<>r the consid- 
eration of such business as he may consider necessary. 
No other business may be considered at a special 
session (Art. V., ^ 8). 

31. Adjournment — When the General Assembly 
has finished its business, whether at a regular or 
special session, adjournment is effected at a date 
agreed upon by the two houses. Neither house can 
adjourn for more than two days without the consent of 
the other (Art. IV., § 10). If the houses fail to agree 
as to the time of adjournment, the governor may 
adjourn the General Assembly to such time as he may 
think proper, but not to a later date than the beginning 
of the next regular session (Art. V., £ 9). Adjournment 
by the governor is called prorogation. The sessions 
of the British Parliament and of European legislatures 
in general are regularly ended by prorogation. Amer- 



6$ TIIE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

ican executives (both of the United States and of the 
States),' however, have the power to prorogue only 
under the same circumstances as in Illinois. 

32. Seat of Government — The Constitution does 
not fix the seat of government. An act of the Gen- 
eral Assembly passed in 1874 prescribed that Spring- 
field should continue to be the capital." In case of 
pestilence or public danger, however, the governor 
may designate some other place as the seat of govern- 
ment. Of course the General Assembly, if it saw fit, 
might repeal the act of 1874 and make some other 
place than Springfield the capital of the State. 



POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE LEGISLATURE 

33. The Legislature Represents the People — The 

General Assembly represents the people of the State. 
Whatever is done by the General Assembly is supposed 
to express the will of the people. This is indicated 
by the opening words of every law made by the Legis- 
lature : " Be it enacted by the people of the State of 
Illinois, represented in the General Assembly " (Art. 
IV., §11). 

When the original States broke away from the 
British government, as they no longer had the crown 
or its agent, the royal governor, over them, they felt 
sure that their liberties Avere safe. They would there- 
after govern themselves by their own freely chosen rep- 
resentatives, and there would be no more trouble. So 
it was that the early State constitutions gave large 

* Rev. Stat., c. 123, § 1. 



STATE GOVERNMENT— LEdlSLATURE 69 

powers to the Legislatures, with few restrictions. Bui 
as years passed on, the States gradually Learned that 
their own representatives could not always be trusted. 
Unscrupulous men managed to secure legislation 
which was not for the public good, hut for private 
advantage. In order as far as possible to prevent 
such misuse of powers entrusted to the Law-making 
body, later constitutions have contained an increasing 
number of checks and prohibitions on Legislation. 
Many such are found in the Illinois Constitution of 
1870. 

34. General Principle of Legislative Power — The 
general principle of power given to a State Legislature 
is, that any law may be enacted which is not forbid- 
den by the Constitution of the United States or by 
the Constitution of the State. Still, the State Consti- 
tution enumerates some specific powers of the Legisla- 
ture. It also prescribes Cor that body certain duties. 

35. Specified Powers of the General Assembly — 
Specified powers of the Legislature often are given 
by way of exception to certain duties or prohibitions. 
Examples of powers thus specifically granted are: the 
creation of courts for cities and towns (Art. VI.. § 1 1, 
changing the boundaries of judicial districts of the 
Supreme Court (Art. VI., § 5), the creation of appellate 
courts and the regulation of appeals (Art. VI., §11), 
provision for dividing the State into judicial circuits 
and for constituting circuit courts therein (Art. VI., 
§ 15), uniting two or more counties for a single county 
court (Art. VI., § 18), providing for appeals from county 
courts (Art. VI., § 19), the establishment of probate 
courts in counties with a population over 50,000 (Art. 
VI., § 20), prescribing districts for justices of the peace, 



70 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

police magistrates, and constables (Art. VI., § 21), re- 
moving' from office any judge, by a vote of three-fourths 
of the members of each house (Art. VI., § 30), exemption 
from taxation of public property and of private prop- 
erty used for certain public purposes (Art. IX., § 3), 
vesting certain powers of taxation in municipal cor- 
porations (Art. IX., § 9), providing for certain roadways 
(Art. IV., § 30), and for dikes and drains (Art. IV., 
§ 31). It does not seem necessary in all cases to specify 
these powers, but they are enumerated doubtless so 
that there can be no possible question about them. 

36. Specified Duties of the General Assembly — 
Certain duties of the General Assembly are specifically 
prescribed. 

It is the duty of the General Assembly to make by 
law proper appropriations of money from the State 
treasury for the expenses of the State government 
( Art. IV., § 18) ; to provide the letting of contracts for 
supplies and printing for the State (Art. IV., § 25), and 
for the protection of miners (Art. IV., § 59) ; to pass 
liberal homestead and exemption laws, i.e., laws ex- 
empting one's home and other property, to a reasonable 
amount, from seizure for the non-payment of debts 
(Art. IV., § 32) ; to prescribe the times of holding of 
county courts (Art. VI., § 14) ; to provide " a thorough 
and efficient system of free schools " (Art. VIII., § 1) ; 
to give the option to counties of being organized by 
townships (Art. X., § 5) ; to regulate the fees of public 
officers (Art. X., § 12) ; to provide for minority repre- 
sentation in voting by stockholders of corporations 
(Art. XI., § 3); to regulate railroad charges (Art. XL, 
§ L5); to protect people from fraud and extortion in 
dealing with public warehouses (Art. XII., § 0), and 



STATE GOVERNMENT— LEGISLATURE 71 

in grain (Art. XIII., § 7) ; to make laws forbidding the 
sale of lottery tickets in the State (Art. IV., § 27). 

THE METHOD OF LEGISLATION 

37. In order that the Legislature may exercise its 
powers properly, the Constitution fixes quite definitely 
the manner in which laws shall be made (Const., Art. 
IV., ^§ 11-13). This corresponds to that which is 
usual in all the States, and is fully explained in Part 
I. (pp. 41-46). One or two special provisions in Illi- 
nois may be noted. 

38. Revenue Bills — The Constitution of the United 
States* and those of several of the States require 
that bills for raising revenue shall originate only in 
the lower house. This is in-imitation of a custom of 
the British Parliament, for which at one time there 
was an excellent reason. No such reason exists in 
our country, however, and the Illinois Constitution 
very properly provides that any bill may originate in 
either house, but may be altered, amended, or rejected 
by the other (Const.," Art. IV., § 12). 

39. The Popular Veto — The Referendum — Not 
all resolutions of the Legislature have to go to the 
governor. 

As has been seen (p. 53), a plan for a new Consti- 
tution is drawn up by a body of representatives of 
the people — a Constitutional Convention. This is, un- 
like the Legislature, a unicameral body, and the plan 
which it may draft is not submitted to the governor 
for his approval, but to a vote of the people. If a 
majority of all those voting approve the plan, it is 

* U. S. Const., Art. I., §7. 



72 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

adopted and becomes law. Otherwise it is rejected. 
This amounts to a veto by the people — an absolute 
veto, as there is no way of passing it if the people 
disapprove. The governor's veto is not absolute, as 
a two-thirds vote in each house may make a bill be- 
come a law, notwithstanding the disapproval of the 
governor. 

A resolution of the General Assembly in favor of a 
constitutional amendment also does not go to the 
governor, but, like the plan proposed by a constitu- 
tional convention, goes to the people instead. If a 
majority of those voting approve, the proposed amend- 
ment is adopted and becomes laAV. 

The Constitution also provides that in some cases 
even measures Avhich have passed both houses of the 
Legislature and received the approval of the governor 
do not become law unless they receive also the direct 
assent of the people. 

No indebtedness can be incurred by the State beyond 
the sum of $250,000, " except for the purpose of repel- 
ling invasion, suppressing insurrection, or defending 
the State in war," without the express approval of the 
people (Art. IV., § 18). 

The total expenditure on the State-house building 
and grounds cannot exceed $3,500,000, unless the 
people approve (Art. IV., § 33). 

No law authorizing banks can go into effect until 
the people have approved (Art. XL, § 5). 

The above three requirements, together with those 
relating to amending the Constitution, require a vote 
of the people throughout the State. 

There are other restrictions on the legislative power 
of the General Assembly Avhich relate only to particular 



STATE GOVERNMENT—LEGISLATURE 73 

counties. No division of a county can be made, and 
no addition to the territory of a county or subtraction 
from it, without the assent of the people concerned 
(Art.X.,§§2,3). 

No county seat can be changed without the assent 
of the voters of the county — in this case a three-fifths 
affirmative vote being required (Art. X., §4). 

There is also a like limitation in the taxing power of 
county authorities (Art. X., § s— see also p. 153). 

The above are requirements of the Constitution. In 
enacting laws in accordance with its powers the Gen- 
eral Assembly has also in some cases made use of the 
same principle. In 1805 a law (p. 148-9) was passed 
applying the merit system to the government of cities, 
but providing that it should not apply to any city 
without the consent of the voters.* 

The reference to the people of a proposed law gives 
the people an absolute veto on the measure. This is 
also called sometimes "direct legislation," sometimes 
the " referendum." 

In Illinois no law takes effect until July 1 next 
following its passage, unless the General Assembly by a 
vote of two-thirds of all the members of each house 
declare that an emergency exists — in which case the 
law may take effect at once. 

The veto of the governor of Illinois is fatal to a bill 
unless it is passed in spite of his objections by a vote 
of two-thirds of all the members of each house. 

*Rev. Stat. c. 24, 8 483-4. 



CHAPTER VI 

THE STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE 

STRUCTURE 

1. The Executive Department of the government 
carries on the State business — the administration. This 
might more accurately be called the executive depart- 
ments, as in fact it consists of a number of officers who 
are not very closely related to one another, and who are 
not under a common control. In this respect Illinois 
is quite unlike the United States. The difference is 
plainly seen by quoting from the two Constitutions. 

The Constitution of the United States (Art. II., § 1) 
reads : " The executive power shall be vested in a 
President of the United States of America." 

The Constitution of Illinois (Art. V., § 1) reads : 
"The executive department shall consist of a gov- 
ernor, lieutenant-governor, secretary of state, auditor 
of public accounts, treasurer, superintendent of public 
instruction, and attorney-general." 

From these statements, and from the subsequent 
distribution of powers, it will appear that the President 
directs and controls the Federal administration, while 
the Illinois governor has little or no control over the 
remaining executive officers. These officers are not 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE f& 

responsible to the governor, because he does not appoint 

them and he cannot remove them, lie can only ask 
information from them. 



THE GOVERNOR 
STRUCTURE OF THE OFFICE 

2. The Governor is elected by the people at each 

alternate biennial general election (p. 58). His term 
of office is four years, beginning on the second .Mon- 
day of the January following the election. 

J*. Election and Term of Office— The election 

of governor, it will be seen, comes in the same year 
as the choice of Presidential electors it lie year whose 
number is divisible by four), and the governor's term 
of office xvvy nearly coincides with that of the Presi- 
dent (Art. V., §§ L, 3). 

While the governor's term of office is four years, 
nevertheless it does not expire "until his successor is 
elected and qualified." Thus, in case of any failure to 
elect a new governor, or of any delay in the assump- 
tion of office, the former governor continues t<> hold 
the chair. On the other hand, as soon as the Presi- 
dent's term has expired, he becomes at once a private 
citizen. There might, then, be circumstances in which 
there would be no President of the United States. 
But it is likely that there will be, under almost any 
circumstances, a governor of Illinois. 

If, at the election, there should be two candidates 
for governor with an equal vote, and that higher than 
any other, then the General Assembly, by joint ballot, 
chooses one of the two (Art. Y., § 4). Any contest as 



76 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

to the election is also decided in like manner by the 
General Assembly. 

4. Qualifications — To be elected governor one 
must have three qualifications : age, citizenship, and 
residence. The age must be at least thirty ; for the 
five years next preceding the election the candidate 
must have been a citizen of the United States (Art. Y., 
§ 5), and for the year next preceding the election he 
must have been a resident of the State (Art. VII., § 6). 

5. Disqualifications — The governor cannot hold 
any other State office during the term for which he is 
elected, and he must reside at the seat of government 
(Art. V, §§ 5, 1). 

6. Privileges — The governor is entitled to a sal- 
ary, which must be fixed by law, and cannot be in- 
creased or diminished during his official term (Art. V., 
§ 23). The law at present fixes the salary at $6,000. 
The same law gives the governor the use of the execu- 
tive mansion at Springfield as a residence."* 



ADMINISTRATIVE POWERS 

7. Supreme Executive Power — The powers of 
governor, while not so great as those of the President 
of the United States, are still considerable. The gov- 
ernor has the "supreme executive power" (Art. Y., 
§ 6), which merely means that in point of rank and 
dignity he represents the State, and that, so far as the 
Constitution and laws warrant, he supervises and man- 
ages the State affairs. 

8. Appointments to Civil Offices — The power to 

* Rev. Stat, c. 53, §1. 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE 77 

appoint, by and with the advice and consent of the 

Senate, some officers of the State civil service belongs 
to the governor — officers whose appointment or ('lec- 
tion is not otherwise provided for (Art. V., § 1 < > i. These 
officers are: the boards which manage the various 
State institutions (excepting the Stale University), jus- 
tices of the peace in the city of ( Jhicagq I Ait. VI., 
and a few other State officers. Their functions will 
be explained later (p. 84). 

i). Appointments to military Ofliees — The ('(in- 
stitution makes the governor commander-in-chief <>f 
the military and naval forces of the State (Art. Y.. 
^ 14), and requires that all militia officers shall receive 
their commissions from him (Ait. XII., § 3). The stat- 
utes give him the power to appoint the officers of his 
own staff, genera] officers, and, on recommendation of 
the latter, their staffs also.* 

IO. Appointment to Fill Vacancy— In case of va- 
cancy in any office not elective, it is the governor's 
duty, if the Senate is not in session, to make a tempo- 
rary appointment until the next meeting of the Senate. 
lie then nominates some person to fill the office, and. 
by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, 
makes the appointment to fill such vacancy for the re- 
mainder of the term in question (Art. V.. § 11). 

Judicial officers are elective, and so as a rule a 
vacancy in such office is filled by a special election. 
However, in case of a vacancy in the office of a judge, 
if the unexpired term does not exceed one year, the va- 
cancy is filled by the governor's appointment (Art. VI., 
§ 32). 

* Rev. Stat., c. 129, §§ 4, 5. 



78 THE G0VERN3IENT OF ILLINOIS 

11. Removal from Office — The governor has the 
power to remove from office " any officer whom he may 
appoint, in case of incompetency, neglect of duty, or 
malfeasance in office " (Art. V., § 12). Of course this 
power does not extend to any officers who derive their 
authority from any other source than the governor's 
appointment. 

12. Military Control — The governor is commander- 
in-chief of the military and naval forces of the State, 
and may call them out to maintain public order or to 
protect the State from invasion. The State National 
Guard and Naval Militia are thus bound to obey the 
governor's orders (Art. V., § 14). 

13. Information — The governor may at any time 
require information, in writing, from any officer of the 
Executive Department or of State institutions, as to 
matters falling under their charge (Art. Y., § 21). 

LEGISLATIVE POWERS 

14. "While the governor is supposed to be at the 
head of the executive, or administrative, branch of the 
State government, yet he has some powers which are 
related to legislation. This is one of the exceptions to 
the separation of powers to which reference is made 
in Article III. of the Constitution. 

15. Meeting- and Adjournment of the Legislature 
— The governor may convene the Legislature in special 
session (p. 67), and, in case of disagreement between 
the two houses as to the time of adjournment, he may 
adjourn them to a, date which he may fix (p. 67) (Art. 

V.; §§ 8, 9). 

lO. Suggestion of Legislation— He may suggest to 



STATE OOVERNMENT-THE EXECUTIVE 79 

the General Assembly such legisation as he thinks ex- 
pedient (Art. Y., § 7). Of course the Legislature is not 
bound to act in accordance with his suggestions. 

17. Approval or Negative of Bills— Veto— All hills 
passed by the General Assembly must, before they be- 
come laws, be presented to the governor for his ap- 
proval (]>. 73) (Art. V., § 16). Thus he has a voice in 
legislation, and while his veto is not absolute yet it is 
often quite difficull to secure a two-thirds vote of each 
house for the enactment of a bill which he disapproves. 

JUDICIAL POWERS 

■ 18. The governor has some powers which relate to 
the structure or proceedings of the judiciary. 

19. Appointment — As has been seen, the governor 
appoints a judge to (ill a vacancy in such office, if the 
unexpired term is not over one year (p. 77) (Art VI., 
§ 32), and he appoints the justices of the peace of Cook 
County, by and with the advice and consent of the 
Senate (p. 134) (Art. VI., § 28). 

20. Pardons — The governor has the power "to 
grant reprieves, commutations, and pardons, alter con- 
viction, for all offences" (Art. V., ^ 13). 

A reprieve is a postponement of the time for the 
execution of a penalty inflicted by a court upon an 
offender. 

A commutation is a lessening of such a penalty. 

A pardon frees an offender from all the legal con- 
sequences of a crime. 

It is thought proper that somewhere in the govern- 
ment there should he lodged the power of granting 
mercy to offenders, as at times there are reasons which 



80 THE OOVERN3IENT OF ILLINOIS 

make advisable such exceptions to the ordinary opera- 
tion of justice. This power is usually vested in the 
executive. It is a heavy burden for the governor, as 
urgent appeals are made to him in many cases, and it 
is hard to resist petitions for clemency. In order to 
relieve the governor from this pressure the Pennsyl- 
vania Constitution establishes a board of pardons, 
consisting of four State officers, and gives the gover- 
nor the pardoning power only in cases recommended 
by that board. In Illinois such a board is constituted 
by law, but it is merely an advisory body (p. 113). 

The governor of Illinois can exercise this power 
only -after a court of law has duly found a person 
guilty of an offence against the laws, — " after convic- 
tion." There is no such limitation on the pardoning 
power of the President of the United States, and ac- 
cordingly he can grant immunity from the legal con- 
sequences of crime at any time, even before arrest or 
trial.* 

DUTIES 

21. The main duty of the governor is to "take care 
that the laws be faithfully executed " (Art. V., § C>). 
This duty he may perform in various ways. 

22. Execution of the Laws — In the first place, he 
is to perform such duties as the laws enacted by the 
Legislature prescribe. 

If he has reason to believe that officers whom he 
Ikis appointed ;ire derelict in their duty, he can re- 
move them and appoint others in their place (p. 78). 

In c;isc of other officers of the State, as well as local 

♦Const, of the United States, Art. II., §2. 



STATE GO VERNMENT—THE EXECUT1 VE 8 1 

officers of nil kinds, the governor has practically little 
or no control, and hence no means of seeing thai they 
do their duty in executing the laws. 

If the laws of the State arc resisted by private in- 
dividuals, it is the duty of mayors and police authori- 
ties in cities, and of the sheriffs of counties, to over- 
come such resistance. If they are unable to do so, 
they are then to notify the governor, and it becomes 
his duty to call out the State military to aid in en- 
forcing the law." ;: ' 

2,*5. Appointments It is the duty of the governor 
to make the appointments to office heretofore men- 
tioned (]). 76-7). 

24. Information to the General Assembly It is 
his duty to give the Legislature information as t<> the 

condition of the State I Art. Y.. c< 7). This he does at 

the beginning of each Legislative session, and at the 

end of his term of office. At the same time he ac- 
counts for all money in the State which may he in his 
charge, and furnishes estimates of the amount to he 
raised by taxation. He bases his estimates on the re- 
ports which the State 1 executive officers make to him 
(Art. V., § 21). The communication which the gov- 
ernor makes to the General Assembly is called his 
message. 

25. Oath — The governor, like all other civil officers 
of the State, must, before he enters on the duties of 
his office, take an oath to support the Constitution of 
the United States and the Constitution of the State, 
and that he will faithfully perform his duties to the 
best of his ability (Art, Y., § 26). 

* Rev. Stat., c. 38, § 2561-256n. 



82 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

2<>. First Governor — The first governor, elected in 
181S, was Shadrach Bond. 



VACANCY IN THE OFFICE OF GOVERNOR 

27. Vacancy in other executive offices, as has been 
explained (p. 77), is filled either by a special election or 
by appointment by the governor. But if the gover- 
nor himself should die, or in any other Avay the office 
should become vacant, it is important that the place 
should be filled immediately. For this purpose the 
Constitution makes two special provisions. 

28. The Lieutenant-Governor — The first is the 
creation of an officer, the lieutenant-governor, for the 
sole purpose of being ready to fill the office of governor 
in case of a vacancy (Art. V., §§ 1, 3, 5). 

29. Election, Tenure, Qualifications — The lieuten- 
ant-governor is elected by the people at the same time 
and for the same term as the governor, and he must 
have the same qualifications as the governor, and has 
the same disqualification for holding other office (Art. 
V., §§1,3,5). 

30. Oath and Salary — The lieutenant-governor 
takes the same oath as the governor. His salary is 
fixed by statute at $1,000. If he succeeds to the duties 
of governor, he has the emoluments of that office. 

31. Duties — In order to give him something to do, 
the lieutenant-governor is made presiding officer of the 
Senate, but he is not a member of that body and has 
no vote except in case of a tie (Art. V., § 18). 

32. Filling Vacancy — If the governor fails to take 
the oath of office, dies, resigns, is convicted on impeach- 
ment and so removed from office, is absent from the 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE 83 

State, or in any other way incapable of performing his 
duties (e.g.,i£ be should become insane), the lieutenant- 
governor succeeds to the office for tin- residue of the 
term if the disability be total, for the duration of the 
disability if thai be temporary (Art. V.. § 17i. 

33. First Lieutenant-Governor — The first Lieuten- 
ant-governor of the State was Pierre Menard, elected 
in 1818. 

34. President of Senate and Speaker of Hon** — - 
The second provision of* the Constitution is for the case 
in which there is no lieutenant-governor, as well as no 
governor. Then the president pro tempon of the 
Senate (p. 65) fills the vacancy as governor. If in the 
same way he should leave the office vacant, the speaker 
of the House of Representatives sncceeds I Art. V.. § L9). 



CHAPTER VII 

THE EXECUTIVE {Concluded) 

ADMINISTRATIVE DEPARTMENTS 

1. Heads of State Departments — Besides the gov- 
ernor and the lieutenant-governor, the Constitution 
names five other officers in the executive department 
(Art. V., § 1). Each of these is really the head of a 
separate department of the administration — such as in 
the Federal government are called cabinet departments. 
They are the secretary of state, the auditor of public 
accounts, the treasurer, the superintendent of public 
instruction, and the attorney-general. 

2. Election and Term of Office — They are all elected 
by the people at one of the general elections, and all 
but the treasurer for the term of four years. The 
treasurer's term is two years. The secretary of state, 
auditor, and attorney-general are elected at the same 
time as the governor, and begin their term of office at 
the same time with that officer (p. 75) (Art. V., §§ 1, 
2, and 3). A treasurer is elected [it each general elec- 
tion, in November of the even-numbered years. It is 
thought better that his term should be short, so that 
the books can be inspected anew quite frequently. 

.'5. Qualifications — Citizenship and residence are re- 
quired as qualifications for these offices — the general 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE 

requirements for all civil or military office in the State. 
The candidate musl be a citizen of the United States 
and must have been a residenl of the State during the 
year next preceding the election (Art. VII., § 6). 

4. Oath — The heads of departments must take the 
same oath of office as the governor (p. 81) (Art. V.. § 

5. Disqualifications — All except the treasurer are 
ineligible to any other office during the period for 

which they have been elected (Art. V., % 5). 
The treasurer is ineligible to the treasurership for 

two years after the end of the term for which he lias 
been elected (Art. V., § 2). 

None of the five above named officers may reside 
elsewhere than at the seal of government during the 

term for which they have been elected. 

G. Privileges and Duties— The salaries of the of- 
ficers of the executive department are not fixed by the 

Constitution, but are determined by statute."" They 
are in each case, $3,500. 

The salary may not be increased nor diminished 
during the official term of the officer in question (Art. 
V., § 23). 

7. Duties, Constitutional — The Constitution pre- 
scribes certain duties for the heads of executive de- 
partments, and gives the Legislature power to prescribe 
other duties (Art. V., § 1). 

Head", of departments are to keep the public rec- 
ords, books, and papers at the seat of government (Art. 
V., § 1). 

The treasurer must, if required by the governor, give 

*Rev. Stat., c. 53, ^ 1. 



86 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

reasonable additional security for the honest perform- 
ance of his duties (Art. V., S 2). 

( Jareful accounts must be kept of all money received 
or paid out (Art. V., § 20). 

All the heads of executive departments must, at least 
ten days before the beginning of each regular session 
of the Legislature, make to the governor a report of the 
business of the office. A special report must also at 
any time be submitted when required by the governor 
(Art. V., § 21). 

8. Duties, Statutory — The statutes fix the duties of 
the respective officers quite definitely. 

The secretary of state keeps the official records. 
These are all laws enacted by the Legislature with or 
without the approval of the governor, all the proceed- 
ings of the General Assembly, the official acts of the 
governor, the record of all incorporations, and similar 
matters. There are also other less important duties.* 

The auditor of public accounts keeps an account 
with all persons or corporations having financial deal- 
ings with the State, examines all claims on the State for 
money, grants warrants on the State treasury for such 
claims as he finds to be proper, and attends to some 
other duties.f 

The State treasurer takes charge of the money belong- 
ing to the State, and pays it out on warrants drawn by 
the auditor. £ 

The State superintendent of public instruction keeps 
a general oversight of the common schools of the State. 
He gives advice to county superintendents and teachers, 

* Rev. Stat., e. 124, §§ 3-5. f Rev. Stat., c. 15, §§ 7, 8, 22 

J Rev. Stat., c. 130, §§7, 10. 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE 87 

interprets the meaning of the school Laws, grants State 
certificates to teachers who are qualified, records and 
reports educational statistics, acts as a member of cer- 
tain educational governing bodies, and performs some 
other duties. * 

The State attorney-general is the principal Legal 
adviser of the State government. He conducts certain 
Lawsuits for the State (especially in the Supreme 
Court), advises State officers on Legal questions, and 
docs such other dul ies as may be imposed upon him by 

law. t 
!). Vacancy -In case of a vacancy in any of these 

State executive offices, the governor appoints for the 
residue of the term i Art. V.. § 20). :\. 



PURPOSES OF GOVERNMENT AND LAW 

lO. The Main Purposes of Government, as laid 
down in the preamble to the Illinois Constitution, are 
to insure justice, domestic tranquillity, the public de- 
fence, the general welfare, and liberty. All these 
would be in danger without government Men in 
their dealings with one another are in many cases 
apt to be dishonest and unjust. Thieves and robbers 
are ready to appropriate property which is not their 
own. Assaults, riots, even murder, are always possi- 
ble in a mixed and crowded society. Property is in 
danger from lire and Hood, as well as from thieves. 
and the public health may often be endangered by 
careless or ignorant people. 

*Rev. Stat., c. L22, £4. [Rev. Stat., c 14, £4. 

t Rev. Stat., c. 46, § 128. 



88 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

To prevent these and many other dangers to the 
persons and property of the people, government is 
created in all its branches. To secure the purposes of 
the preamble, the Legislature makes laws, the execu- 
tive puts them in force, the courts decide their appli- 
cation to specific cases. 

In order to administer the various laws which have 
1 >een enacted from time to time for the purposes above 
mentioned, the Legislature has been obliged to provide 
officers in addition to those created by the Consti- 
tution, and to specify their powers and duties. In 
many cases these officers are a small body called a 
" board." In other cases they are single individuals. 

A board meets from time to time and decides what 
to do by a majority vote. In the employ of the board 
are usually single officers who carry out the plans 
adopted. The advantage of having a board is in the 
possibility of deliberation — of getting the judgment 
of more than one man. If there is no particular need 
of deliberation, but the main thing is merely to put 
into execution certain policies already determined, 
then a board is not necessary. 

PUBLIC DEFENCE 

1 1. The Public Safety may be in danger from inva- 
sion by a foreign enemy or from insurrection at home. 
To guard against these dangers the Constitution and 
statutes provide for the organization of a State mili- 
tary and naval force (Art. XII.). * This is put under 
the immediate authority of the governor as com- 
pile v. Stat., c. 129. 



state (;oYi:i;.\Mi:xr-riii: EXECUTIVE 

mander-in-chief ( Art. V.. § 14>. There is do State exe- 
cutive department corresponding to the Federal de- 
partment of w;ir. The Suite militia, or a part of 
them, may be called into the service of the United 
States. In that case the command is transferred from 
the governor to the President. 

All able-bodied male citi/ens between the agesof 
eighteen and forty-five, with some exceptions, are lia- 
ble to military duty (Ait. XII., § L), and in an emer- 
gency all may be called on.* Usually, however, the 
ranks of the militia are filled by volunteers. 

12. The National Guard The law provides t li.it 
a certain number of troops shall he enrolled and or- 
ganized so as always to he ready for duty. This body 
is called the " Illinois National Guard." f 

13. The Governor's Staff The general manage- 
ment of the Guard is carried on under the governor's 
direction by several officers who form the governor's 
staff. They are appointed by the governor and hold 
office during his pleasure. The principal officer of the 
governor's stall' is tin 4 adjutant-general, who has 
charge of most of the general administration of the 
Guard. 

14. Organization of the Guard — The Guard is or- 
ganized in companies, battalions, regiments, and bri- 
gades, each with its proper officers. A full company 
of infantry has 103 officers and men. A lull battal- 
ion has four companies; a full regiment has three bat- 
talions ; a brigade has several regiments, usually three 
or four. A company is commanded by a captain, 
aided by two lieutenants, live sergeants, and four 

* Rev. Stat., c. 129, § 1. \ Rev. Stat., e. 129. 



90 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

corporals. A battalion is commanded by a major, a 
regiment by a colonel (with a lientenant-colonel sec- 
ond in command), a brigade by a brigadier-general — 
each commanding officer being aided by a group of 
officers called the staff. Sergeants and corporals are 
non-commissioned officers, being appointed, on recom- 
mendation of the captain, by the battalion or regi- 
mental commander. Other officers are commissioned 
by the governor. 

Captains and lieutenants are elected by their com- 
panies. They are known as line officers. The com- 
manding officers of battalions and regiments, known 
as field officers, are elected by their line officers. 
Brigadier-generals are appointed by the governor. 
Staff officers of a battalion, regiment, or brigade hold- 
ing commissions are appointed by the governor on 
recommendation of the respective commanding officers. 
Non-commissioned staff officers are appointed by the 
respective commanders. All commissioned officers be- 
low the rank of brigadier-general must pass an exam- 
ination in military tactics as a prerequisite to appoint- 
ment. 

Companies of cavalry and artillery are organized 
very nearly like companies of infantry. A company 
of cavalry is usually called a troop, and a company 
of artillery a battery. The latter may have six pieces 
of artillery. 

The State provides the Guard with uniforms, arms, 
and equipments, with armories, places for rifle prac- 
tice, and with camping grounds. 

15. Naval Militia —"None of the States keeps war 
vessels, all such being a part of the United States 
navy. However, several States which border on 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE 91 

navigable water maintain a naval militia, which is 
useful in aiding to maintain order OH occasions of 
emergency, and at the outbreak of war furnishes a 
valuable auxiliary to the national navy. 

The Illinois naval militia consists of two battalions 
of four divisions (or companies) each. The command- 
ing officer is known as a com ma na\ r, each battalion is 
under the command of a lit utt ?iant-command< r. each 
division under a lieutenant (aided by a lieutenant, 
junior grade, and two ensigns). There are also suitable 
staff officers. The governor appoints the officers and 
controls the organ ization. 

PUBLIC EDUCATION 

16. Ignorance is the parent of a large amount of 
misery and crime. In a republic in which suffrage is 
so widely extended as it is in our States, also, unless 
the people are able to understand what their votes 
mean, it is evident that voting will be not only useless 
but dangerous (Art. V 1 1 1 .).* 

For these reasons education is provided by the State 
free of cost. 

17. Ordinance of 1787, Article III.— One of the 
six fundamental articles of compact between the 
United States and the people of the old Northwestern 
Territory (p. 14) found in the Ordinance of 17 s 7 is 
this : " Religion, morality, and knowledge, being neces- 
sary to good government and the happiness of man- 
kind, schools and the means of education shall forever 
be encouraged." 

*Rev. Stat., c. 122. 



92 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

18. Land Set Aside for Education — The enabling 
act of Congress for the admission of Illinois to the 
Union stipulated that in each township the section 
numbered 16 should be granted to the State for the use 
of the people in said township in maintaining schools 
— and further that one entire township, in addition 
to one already reserved for that purpose under the 
territorial laws, should be set aside for the purpose of 
maintaining " a seminary of learning." * 

19. Constitution of Illinois — The present Consti- 
tution of the State contains an entire article (VIII.) 
devoted to education, which requires the General As- 
sembly to " provide a thorough and efficient system of 
free schools, whereby all children of this State may 
receive a good common-school education " (§ 1). The 
Constitution also requires that all funds received by 
the State for educational purposes be devoted to those 
purposes and to no other (§ 2), that the money of the 
State shall not be appropriated to aid sectarian schools 
(§ 3), that no school officers or teachers shall have 
any pecuniary interest in books, apparatus, or furni- 
ture used by the schools (§ 4), and permits counties to 
have a school superintendent (§ 5). 

2(>. School Law — The State school law is very elab- 
orate.! It provides for schools in every city, village, 
and district in the State, supported by the public funds 
derived from the sale of the school lands and by tax- 
ation. These schools Avill be discussed more in detail 
under the subject of "Public Education" (p. 155). 
The laws provide also for a State superintendent of 
public instruction, for a State Board of Education, for 



Ad of April 18, 1818, $ G. f Rev - ytilt -> c - 122 - 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE <j:\ 

schools in the State charitable institutions, for State 
normal schools, and for a State university. 

21. State Superintendent — The duties of the State 

superintendent have already hern mentioned (p. v ''". 
His term of office is four years, and he is elected in 
the middle of the governor's term, so as to keep this 
election as much as possible Out of pally politics. 

State schools are maintained in the charitable insti- 
tutions for the blind, the deaf and dumb, and the fee- 
ble-minded (p. 99). 

22. Normal Schools— Normal schools are estab- 
lished for education in the science and art of teaching. 
It is by no means true that one who is familiar with a 
Subject is able to teach it. It is true that <>ne who has 
a natural aptitude for teaching is Likely to succeed even 
without special training. But it is far better \'<>v any 
teacher, whatever his natural endowments or his knowl- 
edge, to have the advantage of study and instruction 
in the principles and methods of education. For these 
purposes the State has by law established and maintains 
four normal schools. 

23. The Illinois State Normal University, at Nor- 
mal, McLean County, was the first t<> he organized, 
the work having begun in is;>7. This school was 
given by act of the Legislature the land grant of two 
townships to which reference was made by ( ongress 
in the enabling act for Illinois (p. 20). Its affairs are 
managed by the Board of Education of the State of 
Illinois. The board consists of fifteen members, ap- 
pointed by the governor, with the approval of the 
Senate, for the term of six years. The State super- 
intendent is ex officio a member of the board, and its 
secretary. 



94 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

24. The Southern Illinois State Normal Univer- 
sity, at Carbondale, Jackson County, was organized in 
I860, and began work in 1874. Its business is managed 
by a board of trustees, of whom five are appointed by 
the governor for a term of four years, and a sixth mem- 
ber is the State superintendent of public instruction. 

25. The Eastern Illinois State Normal School, at 
Charleston, Coles County, and the Northern Illinois 
State Normal School, at DeKalb, were organized by 
law in 1895, and are to begin instruction in the autumn 
of 1899. Each is in charge of a board of trustees, five 
in number, appointed by the governor, by and with 
the advice and consent of the Senate, for a term of 
four years. 

26. State University — The University of Illinois, 
at Urbana, Champaign County, is the State University 
— the two State Normal Universities being in fact not 
universities, but normal schools. An act of Congress 
passed in 1862 gave a land grant for the establishment 
of colleges of agriculture and the mechanic arts in the 
several States. On this foundation the General As- 
sembly in 1863 organized by law the Illinois Industrial 
University, the original purposes of which were indi- 
cated by the name. As the character of the work 
broadened, the name was changed (1885) to its present 
form. It now consists of a number of colleges and 
schools, devoted to general and professional education. 
The schools of medicine and pharmacy are in Chicago. 

The university is controlled by a board of trustees. 
Nine are elected by the people for a term of six years, 
three being chosen at each biennial general election. 
Thus the board is a continuous body (p. 59). The 
governor, superintendent of public instruction, and the 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE 95 

president of the State Board of Agriculture are sever- 
ally ex officio members of the board. 

The boards which control these five State educational 
institutions have the power to appoint all teachers and 
officers, to prescribe the plan of organization and study, 
and to expend the money appropriated for their re- 
spective schools by the Legislature. 

27. State Libraries and Museums Hesides the 

Libraries and museums connected with the University 
and other educational institutions, the State maintains 
three libraries at Springfield. 

The State Law Library is connected with the 
Supreme Court. 

The State Library is a general collection of books. 
kept in the capitol, ami controlled by a board consist- 
ing of the governor, the secretary of state, and the 
State superintendent of public instruction. 

The State Historical Library is a collection of books, 
documents, and other material illustrating the history 
of Illinois. It is managed by a board of three trustees. 
appointed by the governor, with the approval of the 
Senate, for two years. 



PENAL AND REFORMATORY INSTITUTIONS 

28. Crime — A third danger to the peace and good 
order of society conies from crime. Some crimes are 
the result of sudden temptation, others come from habit 
and deliberate purpose. Those who are guilty of these 
latter crimes are habitual criminals. 

The laws of the State forbid certain acts to be done, 
and prescribe penalties for the commission of such 



96 TIIE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

acts.* Violation of any part of these laws is crime. 
It is the duty of local police officers to arrest criminals, 
and of the courts to ascertain the guilt or innocence of 
prisoners by a trial. In case of proven guilt the court 
then prescribes such penalty as the law directs. 

In most cases of serious crime the penalty is impris- 
onment for a greater or less period. The State, there- 
fore, has to provide prisons in which to keep con- 
demned criminals. 

One purpose of imprisonment is punishment. An- 
other is to remove the criminal from society and so 
to prevent him from further criminal acts. But it is 
hoped that in as many cases as possible the prisoner's 
reform may be effected. If the criminal can be 
taught habits of industry and orderly life he may, 
when he leaves the prison, become a law-abiding and 
honest citizen. It is in any event not desirable that 
any of the prisoners should be kept in idleness. Ac- 
cordingly many forms of productive industry are car- 
ried on in the prisons. Plans are also put in opera- 
tion by which prisoners are classified, and those who 
behave well may earn better treatment while in the 
prison and may shorten their term. 

29. The Illinois State Penitentiary at Joliet was 
established by law in 1857, and opened in 1858. It is 
controlled by a board of three commissioners, appointed 
by the governor with the approval of the Senate. The 
term is six years, and one is appointed every second 
year. 'Flic warden, who has immediate charge of the 
prison, and other officials are appointed by the board.f 

SO. Southern Illinois Penitentiary — There is a 

* Rev. Stat., c. 38. \ Rev. Stat., c. 108, §§ 3-5. 



STATU GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE \\~ 

seoond prison at Chester, established in L87T, to which 
criminals are sent from the southern part of the State. 
This is the Southern Illinois Penitentiary. Its man- 
agement is in the hands of a board of three commis- 
sioners, in all essential respects like the board of the 
Joliet prison.* 

31. The Parole System — One arrangement for the 
reformation of prisoners involves the indeterminate 
sentence and the pa/role system.^ 

For all felonies except treason and murder a maxi- 
mum period and minimum period of imprisonment arc 
fixed in the law. A judge in sentencing a convicted 
criminal does not decide t lie time limit. If the con- 
vict proves himself worthy of the privilege, he may 
be allowed to leave the prison on parole. As long 
as lie behaves himself he will not be molested, and if 
he continues to be industrious and apright he may, on 
recommendation of the prison authorities,' be finally 
discharged from the remainder of his penalty, provid- 
ing the governor approves. A prisoner who is guilty 
of violating the conditions of his parole may be ar- 
rested and compelled to serve the remainder of his 
maximum term. 

32. Illinois Asylum for the Criminal Insane — 
Insane criminals are kept in the Illinois Asylum for 
the Criminal Insane, also at Chester, and controlled 
by the board of commissioners of the Southern Peni- 
tentiary. This was established in 1> ( .>± Such unfor- 
tunate creatures evidently must be separated from 
ordinary criminals and kept under suitable care. 



*Rev. Stat., c. 10S, §§ GG-69. 
fRev. Stat., c. 38, §§ 498-506. 



98 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

38. Illinois State Reformatory — It is evident that 
there is more encouragement in the hope of reforming 
quite young criminals than can be the case with those 
of mature age. On the other hand, to confine mere 
boys among hardened offenders can have no result 
but to confirm criminal inclinations which otherwise 
might be eradicated. With these facts in view, the 
Legislature established in 1867 a reform school, now 
known as the Illinois State Reformatory. It is situ- 
ated at Pontiac, Livingston County. It is controlled 
by a board of managers, five in number. They are ap- 
pointed by the governor for a term of ten } r ears each, 
one being appointed every second year. ~No more 
than three may be of one political party. Boys be- 
tween the ages of ten and twenty-one are sentenced to 
the reformatory rather than to one of the penitenti- 
aries. In each case the sentence is not for a definite 
term, and the board of managers may release any pris- 
oner who gives evidence of reformation. The release 
may be on probation, or it may be final. While in 
the reformatory the boys are taught useful branches 
of knowledge in a carefully planned school.* 

34. State Home for Juvenile Female Offenders — 
Girls between the ages of ten and sixteen who are 
offenders against the laws, or who for reasons satis- 
factory to a court should be taken in charge by the 
State, are sent to the State Home for Juvenile Female 
Offenders, at Geneva, Kane County. This is controlled 
by a board of trustees, five in number, two of whom 
may be women. They are appointed by the governor 
for a term of three years each, one being appointed each 

* Rev. Stat. c. 118. 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE <♦<♦ 

year. Inmates of the home are taught suitable indus- 
tries. It is attempted to make the girls capable of 
earning a respectable living when they .re sent away.* 

INSTITUTIONS FOR THE ALLEVIATION OF 
MISFORTUNE 

:$5. Public- Charities — There are some kinds of 
misfortune for which the State can on the whole take 
better care than any private charity. For this reason 
it is a common thing throughout the Onion for the 

States to establish and maintain asylums for the blind, 
for the deaf and dumb, Tor the insane, and lor the 
feeble-minded. Besides these, there are homes for old 
soldiers, who have risked their lives for their country 

and are no longer able to care for themselves. 

General supervision over such work in Illinois be- 
longs to the Board of State (.Commissioners of Public 

Charities. This body consists of five persons, ap- 
pointed by the governor with the approval of the 
Senate. The term of office is five years, and one is 
appointed annually. The board inspects the various 
State charitable institutions and makes an annual re- 
port to the governor. 

Illinois maintains at present fourteen charitable in- 
stitutions. There are six for the insane, two for the 
blind, one for the deaf and dumb, one for feeble- 
minded children, one eye and ear infirmary, a home 
for soldiers and sailors, a home for the widows and 
one for the orphans of soldiers. 

The ^Northern Hospital for the Insane is at Elgin ; 

*Rev. Stat., c. 118, £ 2G. 



100 THE OOVERN3IENT OF ILLINOIS 

the Southern Hospital for the Insane is at Anna ; the 
Eastern Hospital for the Insane is at Kankakee; the 
Western Hospital for the Insane is at Watertown ; 
the Central Hospital for the Insane is at Jacksonville ; 
the Asylum for the Incurable Insane is at Barton ville 
(near Peoria) ; the Illinois Institution for the Blind is at 
Jacksonville, and there is an Industrial Home for the 
Blind in Chicago ; the Illinois Institution for the Edu- 
cation of the Deaf and Dumb is at Jacksonville ; the 
Asylum for Feeble-minded Children is at Lincoln ; the 
Illinois Charitable Eye and Ear Infirmary is in Chi- 
cago ; the Soldiers' and Sailors' Home is at Quincy ; 
the Soldiers' Widows' Home is at Wilmington ; the 
Soldiers' Orphans' Home is at Normal. 

Each of these institutions is controlled by a board of 
trustees, usually of three members, appointed by the 
governor, with the approval of the Senate, for a term 
of six years, one being appointed every two years. 

PERSONAL SAFETY 

36. The Safety of people in life, limb, and health 
must largely depend on their oAvn intelligence and 
vigilance. However, one part of the business of gov- 
ernment is to protect the community from dangers 
which cannot easily be guarded against by individuals 
themselves. The most of this is done by local authori- 
ties. The general government of the State, however, 
undertakes some things which are of such a nature as 
to be beyond the power of localities. 

:*7. The State Board of Health consists of seven 
persons, appointed by the governor, with the approval 
of the Senate, for a term of seven years. One is ap- 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE 101 

pointed each year. The board has power to establish 
quarantines, to investigate sanitary matters and to 
make sanitary regulations, lias charge of the State 

system of registration of births and deaths, and deter- 
mines the Legal qualifications of physicians to practice 
medicine.* 

38. The State Board of Pharmacy consists of live 
persons, themselves duly qualified pharmacists, ap- 
pointed by the governor Cor a term of five years, one 
each year. \ Its duties are to examine applicants for 
certificates of authorization to compound and dispense 
medicines, to issue such certificates to persons found 
competent, and to prosecute persons who dispense 
drugs without such certificates. 

Hi). The State Board of Dental Examiners has a 
like constitution with the hoard of pharmacy, and per- 
forms similar duties with reference to practicing 
dentists.;): 

No one has a right to practice as a physician, of as a 
dentist, or to dispense drugs in Illinois, who isn<>t duly 
qualified under the Laws of the State. The three hoards 
above named are created in order to enforce those laws. 
The object is to prevent danger to life and health from 
ignorant and unskilful persons. 

40. Laws for Protection of Goal Miners— -Coal 
mining is a very dangerous employment — dangerous in 
many ways. In order to protect those engaged in this 
employment against such dangers the laws make very 
specific regulations and require a careful inspection of 
mines by experts. The inspectors are selected in ac- 



*Rev. Stat., c. 12Ga, c. 91, §5. \ Rev. Stat., c 91, §§l&-34 
JRev. Stat., c. 91, §§35-44. 



102 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS ' 

cordance with a carefully planned system. The board 
of labor commissioners (p. 107) appoints a board of ex- 
aminers, consisting of two coal miners, two coal opera- 
tors, and one mining engineer. On the recommenda- 
tion of this board the governor appoints seven duly 
qualified inspectors, one for each of the seven districts 
in which the State is divided for the purpose. These 
inspectors make careful inspection of all coal mines and 
appurtenances in the State, in order to make sure that 
the mining laws are properly observed. * 

41. State Board of Factory Inspectors — Some 
manufacturing industries also are accompanied by 
dangers and evils which the State tries to prevent. 
Clothing is at times made or repaired in small and 
crowded rooms reeking with filth and disease. Such 
work is dangerous to those employed in it, and is, per- 
haps, equally dangerous to any who may afterwards 
handle or use the garments. Workshops are often 
badly planned for health and comfort. Young chil- 
dren are employed for long hours in factories when 
they ought to be in school. These and similar evils 
the laws are intended to remedy, f In order to have 
these laws properly enforced, a State Board of Factory 
Inspectors is created. \ This board consists of one 
inspector, one assistant inspector, and ten deputy 
inspectors. Five of the deputies must be women. 
The governor makes the appointments. The inspector 
has a term of four years, and the others hold during 
good behavior. 

42. State Board of Examiners of Architects — 
The proper construction of buildings has an important 

* Rev. Stat., c. 93. f Rev. Stat., c. 48. % Ibid., § 29. 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE In;; 

relation to personal safety. II" the architecture is 
grossly defective the building itself may collapse, to 
the great danger of Life and Limb; it may be a fire- 
trap, or the sanitary arrangements may cause disease. 
For these reasons the laws regulate the profession of 
architects, and the enforcemenl of those laws is put 
in the hands of a State Hoard of Examiners of Archi- 
tects. No architect can practice his profession in 
the State unless properly licensed by this board.* 



PROTECTION AGAINST FRAUD, EXTORTION. AND 
INCOMPETENCE 

43. There are some forms of fraud, extortion, and 
incompetence against which it is very difficult for in- 
dividuals to protect themselves. Laws are made, there- 
fore, to prevent these evils, and officers are provided 
whose particular duty it is to see that these laws are 
enforced. 

44. The Railroad and Warehouse Commission 
consists of three persons, appointed by the governor, 
with the approval of the Senate, for a term of two 
years, f It is their duty to inspect railroads and ware- 
houses for the storage of grain, and to enforce the 
provisions of the State laws regulating the methods 
of doing business and the maximum charges which 
can be made. These laws are based on Articles XI. 
and XIII. of the State. Constitution. 

45. Chief Inspector of Grain — To aid the commis- 
sion in their work the governor is required to appoint 



* Act of 1897. f Rev. Stat., c. 114, §§ 167, 184. 



104 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

a chief inspector of grain, with the approval of the 
Senate." His term is two years. On his recommenda- 
tion the Railroad and Warehouse Commission are 
authorized to appoint a suitable number of assistant 
inspectors. The inspectors of grain are controlled by 
the commission. 

40. Insurance on both person and property has 
become one of the most important facts in modern 
society. The policies in Illinois alone amount to 
many millions of dollars, and involve the interests 
of a large proportion of the people of the State. To 
guard the interests of all concerned, the laws make 
many explicit regulations as to the method of car- 
rying on insurance business, and the supervision of 
such business and the enforcement of the insurance 
laws are entrusted to an insurance department^ at 
the head of which is a superintendent, appointed by 
the governor, with the approval of the Senate, for four 
years. 

47. Board of Examiners of Horseshoers — Serious 
damage may be done to horses by unskilful work in 
shoeing, especially in large cities, and the laws accord- 
in lily provide for a Board of Examiners of Horseshoers. 
This board issues licenses, and no one without a license 
is allowed to practice as a horseshoer in the cities in 
which the law is in force. The law applies to cities 
of 50,000 or more people. Cities of between 10,000 
and 50,000 may come under the provisions of the law 
if they wish4 



* Rev. Stat., c. 114, § 146. \ Rev. Stat., c. 73. 

% Act of 1897. 



STATE GOVERNMENT— Till: EXECUTIVE 1<>;, 

ENCOURAGEMENT AND PROTECTION OF CERTAIN 

INDUSTRIES 

48. The fertile soil of Illinois has from the firs! 
settlement made agriculture a Leading industry*. For 
the encouragement and improvement of farming, 

fairs are held, in which there is competition for prizes 
bestowed on exhibitors <>f choice farm stock and 
products. Farmers' institutes are also conducted in 
various parts of the Stale, in which methods are dis- 
cussed and instruction is given. An annual meeting 
of the same kind is also held at some one place in the 
State. Horticulture is also encouraged. Money is ap- 
propriated by the Legislature for all these objects, and 
the management of these funds is placed in the hands 
of various boards. 

49. The State Board of Agriculture consists of a 
president, the last ex-president, and from each con- 
gressional district of the State one vice-president." The 
presidents and vice-presidents are elected for two years 
by delegates from the comity agricultural societies. 
meeting at the State fair in the even-numbered years. 
The board has charge of the work of the State depart- 
ment of agriculture and oi' the State fairs. 

50. The State Horticultural Society is made by 
law a public corporation, and is given certain funds 
by the State for the encouragement of horticulture^ 
The affairs of the society and the management of its 
funds are entrusted to an elected executive board. 

51. The Illinois Farmers' Institute is made a 
public corporation and manages funds contributed by 

*Rev. Stat., c. 5. f Rev. Stat., c. 5, §§ 16-22. 



100 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

the State. * It consists of three delegates from each 
county, elected annually by the county farmers' insti- 
tutes. The affairs are managed by a board of direc- 
tors, consisting of several members ex officio, the State 
superintendent of public instruction, the professor of 
agriculture in the University of Illinois, the presidents 
of the State Board of Agriculture, of the State Horti- 
cultural Society, and of the State Dairymen's Associa- 
tion, and of one member from each congressional 
district, chosen by the delegates at the annual meeting. 

52. State Board of L<i\ r e Stock Commissioners; — 
The protection of domestic animals from contagious 
and infectious diseases is very important for the busi- 
ness interests of the State. The laws provide means 
for doing this, and entrust those means to the State 
Board of Live Stock Commissioners, f The commis- 
sioners are three in number, appointed by the governor 
for three years, one being appointed each year. They 
must be practiced stock breeders, and must not all be 
of the same political party. 

53. Board of Fish Commissioners — The presence 
in the waters of the State of abundance of edible fish 
not only affords sport, but also assures a valuable 
source of food supply. However, in the ordinary course 
of things it would not be long before the fish in the 
lakes and streams would be practically exterminated. 
To prevent this, laws have been passed X which regu- 
late the time and manner of catching fish, forbid 
certain measures which would destroy them, and pro- 
vide for the stocking of the waters so that the supply 



* Rev. Stat., c. 5, §§ 43.-51. f Rev. Stat., c. 8, §§ 47-61. 

J Rev. Stat., c. 56. 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE 1<)7 

maybe kept up. The enforcement of these laws is 
put principally in the hands of the Board of Fish ( Jom- 
missioners. They are three in number, appointed by 
the governor for a term of three years each. One is 
appointed annually. 

The commission gives particular attention to hatch- 
ing fish, and distributing the young among the waters 
of the State. On recommendation of the commission, 
also, the governor appoints fish wardens, who have 
power to arrest any violators of the laws for the pres- 
ervation of fish. 

54. Game Wardens— Similar conditions make it 
necessary for the State to take measures for prevent- 
ing the destruction of game animals on the land. 4 The 
laws for this purpose are especially enforced by game 
wardens. The governor may appoint three, tor a term 
of two years, one from each of the Largest three cities 
of the State. The wardens watch for the unlawful 
sale of game. 

55. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Many laws have 
been passed for tin 1 , protection of manual Laborers. In 
order to secure accurate knowledge on such subjects, 
the Legislature has established a Bureau of Labor Sta- 
tistics^ which is managed by the Board of Commis- 
sioners of Labor. The board consists of five persons, 
appointed by the governor, with the approval of the 
Senate, for a, term of two years. Three must be man- 
ual laborers, and two must be employers of such labor. 
It is the duty of the board to gather statistics relating 
to manual labor, and to embody these statistics in a 
biennial report to the General Assembly. 

* Rev. Stat., e. 61. f Rev. Stat., c. 17b. 



108 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

56. State Board of Arbitration and Conciliation 

— Disputes between manual laborers and their employ- 
ers have at times led to serious troubles which have 
endangered the public peace. In order to prevent such 
occurrences, the laws provide for a State Board of Ar- 
bitration and Conciliation,* the purpose of which is to 
induce the parties to such a dispute to settle their dif- 
ferences amicably. The board consists of three per- 
sons, appointed by the governor, with the approval of 
the Senate, for a term of three years. Not more than 
two may belong to the same political party. One 
must be an employer of labor, one an employee, and 
one must be neither. 



PUBLIC WORKS 

57. Public Works consist of buildings or engineer- 
ing constructions which are undertaken by the govern- 
ment because they are thought to be for the general 
interest. Thus the United States builds custom-houses 
and post-offices in various cities, and improves harbors 
and rivers for the benefit of navigation. Several 
European nations own and operate railroads and 
telegraph lines. At one time Illinois undertook an 
extensive system of railroads. 

58, Interna] I m provements, 1837-40 — The Gen- 
eral Assembly in 183? authorized an expenditure of 
over $10,000,000 for internal improvements, as the 
works were called. The plan contemplated improve- 
ment of the navigation of several rivers, and a series 
of railroads from east to Avest and north to south across 

* Bey. Stat., c. 10, §§ 19-27. 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE 109 

the State. The work whs began, but was never car- 
ried to completion. It was abandoned in L840, leav- 
ing the State heavily in debt, and with little to show 
for it but a few piles of dirt. 

59. Illinois Central Railroad — In 1850 Congress 

passed an act which granted to the State of Illinois 
nearly 3,000,000 acres of public hmd for the construc- 
tion of a railroad through the centre of the State, with 
a branch to Chicago. Owing to the disastrous expe- 
rience with the plan of L837, the General Assembly did 
not think it wise to undertake the work on State ac- 
count, but in 1851 passed an act by which the entire 
land grant was given to a private corporation (The 
Illinois Central Railroad Company) on condition that 
they should build the road. There were some other 
stipulations, one of which was that in lieu of all taxes 
the company should pay into the State treasury 
annually seven per cent, of the net earnings of the 
road, [n the Constitution of L870itwas provided that 
neither the Legislature nor any other branch of the 
State government should ever have power to modify 
or rescind this arrangement (separate section follow- 
ing Art. XIV., 111. Const.). 

GO. Illinois and Michigan Canal — While the public 
works authorized in 1837 proved a failure, there was 
one undertaking which was carried to completion — 
the Illinois and Michigan Canal. The portage between 
Lake Michigan and the Des Plaines River was long 
used by the French explorers, and the idea of connect- 
ing these waterways by a canal was suggested at an 
early date. In 1822 Congress authorized the State to 
construct the canal through the public land, and in 
1827 in addition gave the State a grant of land which 



HO THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

might be sold to pay the cost. The actual work was 
begun in 1836, and was carried on, through many 
financial difficulties, until its completion in 1848. The 
debt incurred was paid off in 1871. The canal is 
ninety-three miles long, and extends from Chicago to 
Lockport, at the head of navigation on the Illinois 
River. 

The State Constitution forbids the sale or lease of the 
canal without the consent of the people, given at one of 
the general elections (separate Section III., 111. Const.) 

The canal is controlled by a commission of three 
persons, appointed by the governor, with the approval 
of the Senate, for two years.* 

61. Buildings belonging to the State are mostly 
those of the State institutions — the university, peniten- 
tiaries, asylums, and the like. They are built and con- 
trolled by the respective boards. 

The State Capitol at Springfield is a building which 
was constructed under authority of an act passed by 
the General Assembly in 1867. Its cost Avas upwards 
of |4,000,000. In it are rooms for the sessions of the 
two houses of the Legislature and of the Supreme 
Court, besides offices for the governor and for many 
other executive officers and boards. It also contains 
the State libraries. The Legislature is forbidden to 
make appropriations for the building and grounds to 
exceed $3,500,000 without the consent of the people 
given at a general election (Art. IY., § 33). The secre- 
tary of state is the custodian of the building. 

*Rev. Stat., c. 19, §1. 



STATE UOVEENMEXT-TIIE EXECUTIVE HI 

AUXILIARY BOARDS 

62. In order more perfectly to carry out the Consti- 
tution and laws, several commissions are created whose 
duties are to aid in the performance' of duties assigned 
to certain specific departments of the government. 

(>.'*. Election Hoards— 'Hie election of State officers 

and of Federal Presidential electors and representa- 
tives is by the people. It is necessary that the official 
report of these elections should he reviewed by BOine 
competent authority which shall officially determine 
and announce the results. 

All election returns for Presidential electors, repre- 
sentatives in Congress, members of the State Legisla- 
ture, State judicial officers, and members of the State 
boards of equalization are sent by the county clerks to 
the secretary of state. That officer, together with the 
auditor of public accounts and the attorney-general, 
form the State Board of Elections to verify the returns. 

Election returns for the offices of governor, lieuten- 
ant-governor, secretary of state, auditor, treasurer, at- 
torney-general, and superintendent of public instruc- 
tion are sent by the county clerks to the secretary of 
state in sealed envelopes addressed to "The Speaker 
of the House of Representatives." * On the meeting of 
the General Assembly, the speaker opens the envelopes 
in the presence of both houses, and reads the returns. 
The Legislature acts as a State board of elections to 
verify these returns and to settle contests (ArtY.,§IV.). 

64. Commission of Claims — According to the 
Constitution of the United States (Amendment XI.), 

*Rev. Stat., c. 40, £§ T6-7S. 



112 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

a State cannot be sued by any citizen. Accordingly, 
if individuals have any legal claims against the State, 
founded on any law or on any contract with the State 
government, the only way of getting these claims paid, 
if there is a dispute, is to lay the matter before the 
General Assembly. In order to save the time of that 
body, it has been provided by law that there shall be 
a Commission of Claims. * This body is composed 
of three persons, lawyers, not more tham two of 
whom may belong to the same political party. They 
are appointed by the governor, with the approval of 
the Senate, for four } r ears. The commission meets an- 
nually at Springfield, in August. Their awards on 
claims are reported to the governor, and by him are 
laid before the Legislature. 

65. State Board of Equalization — Taxes voted by 
the General Assembly are based on the value of prop- 
erty throughout the State, as determined by the asses- 
sors and the various county boards (p. 151). The coun- 
ty clerks report the results to the State auditor. It is 
quite possible that assessors in different counties may 
not always determine the value of property on the 
same basis, and therefore that some counties may be 
assessed too much and others too little. Of course this 
makes no difference for county taxes, but it would not 
be fair in laying State taxes. To remedy this difficulty 
the law provides for a State Board of Equalization, f 
This board consists of one member from each con- 
gressional district, chosen by the people at the same 
time as the choice of Presidential electors, for a term 
of four years. It is the duty of the board to equalize 

* Rev. Stat., c, 2Ga. f R ev. Stat., c. 120, §§ 100-116. 



STATE GOVERNMENT— THE EXECUTIVE \ \ :> 

the assessment of property values among the counties 
by raising or Lowering such as they think proper, 
within certain limitations. 

66. State Board of Pardons — As has already 

been explained, the governor has the power to pardon 

criminals (p. 7 ( .)). In order to relieve him to some 
extent from the great labor and pressure involved in 
the exercise of this power, the General Assembly by 
law has established a Board of Pardons. This consists 
of three persons, not more than two of whom may 

belong to one political party. They are appointed by 
the governor for three years. 

The constitutional provision which gives the gover- 
nor the pardoning power (Art. \\. § L3) reserves to 

the Legislature the right to prescribe the manner in 
which applications for pardons shall be made. The 
law requires the application to go to the board, which 
then considers the case and recommends to the gover- 
nor such action as in the opinion of the board is 
proper. The recommendation of course is not binding 
on the governor; and a petition for reprieve in case 
of a death penalty may go directly to the governor.* 

* Act of 1897. 



CHAPTER VIII 

THE JUDICIARY 

LAW AND COURTS 

(See also pp. 75-86) 

1. Rights — Two of the main reasons for having a 
government are in order that people may know their 
rights, and in order that these rights may be protected. 

People have a right, for instance, to own and use 
property — to move about freely from place to place — 
to make agreements with one another. 

Without a government there may be great differ- 
ences of opinion as to what are the things to which 
people have rights, and it may be very difficult for 
people to protect themselves against others who are 
unscrupulous. In countries newly settled there has 
sometimes been just that state of things, and every one 
there has had to be ready to defend life and property 
by force. 

Government, then, makes laws which enumerate 
and define rights ; at the same time the government 
provides the means of protecting such rights. 

2. Obligations — On the other hand, no one has any 
business to interfere with people in the enjoyment 
of their rights. One who deprives another wrong- 



77//: JUDICIARY 115 

fully of his property, for example, is a thief or a 
robber. The duty to respect the rights of others is 
what we mean by an obligation. 

3. Criminal Laws — There is one class of laws 
which forbid certain acts to be done, and prescribe a 
penalty for the commission of such acts. The viola- 
tion of one of these prohibitions is a crime. The 
laws in question are called criminal laws. 

The Illinois criminal code contains a Long list of 
acts which arc forbidden as crimes —burglary, murder, 
perjury, and many others.* One Large pari of the 
business of the police and of Law courts is taken up with 
the prevention, detection, and punishment of criminals. 

4. Civil Suits — People who are not criminals 
may differ as to what are their rights. There may 
be difference of opinion as to the facts in dispute, and 
difference of opinion as to what the law means. The 
laws define the rights at issue, and in such cases, if 
the parties cannot agree, it is the business of the 
courts to decide what are the facts and how the law- 
applies. Such business of the courts is called civil, 
instead of criminal. For instance, two men may have 
a contract, in carrying it out they may not be able 
to agree. Then, at the request of one of them, it is for 
the courts of law to decide what are the respective 
rights of the parties under the law which regulates 
contracts. So far as law is concerned, then, people 
have only those rights which the laws enumerate and 
define, and are under obligation to do or not to do 
those things which the laws specify. 

The supreme law of the land — the law with which 

* Rev. Stat., c. 38. 



116 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

no other law must conflict — is the Constitution and 
Laws of the United States. 

Next in importance, in this State, is the Constitution 
of Illinois. Neither the Legislature nor any other au- 
thority in the State may enact a law which conflicts 
with the State Constitution. 

5. Illinois Revised Statutes — The great mass of 
laws which determine private rights in Illinois — i. e., 
the rights of individuals — are the laws of the State, 
found either in the Constitution or in the statutes 
passed by the Legislature. They are nearly all gath- 
ered together in a large volume called the " Revised 
Statutes." As at every session the Legislature makes 
more laws, the Revised Statutes will seldom have quite 
all the laws of the State. 

6. English Law — Yery many of the rules of law 
followed by our courts are English. Before the Revolu- 
tionary War the laws of England were in force through- 
out the colonies. The lawyers and the courts were 
accustomed to English legal methods and rules. These 
have been continued. The General Assembly has en- 
acted that the laws of England which were in force 
when the first English settlement was made in America 
(1607), with some express exceptions, and so far as these 
laws are applicable here (i.e., so far as they are not 
peculiarly applicable to England), shall continue to 
be in force in this State until repealed by act of the 
Legislature.* 

Such laws are of two kinds. Part of them are acts 
of the English Parliament. Part are what is known as 
the Common Law. 

*Rov. Stat., c. 28. 



THE JUDICIARY 117 

7. Common Law— The Common Law is simply 
the long-established customs of the English courts. 
Many of these customs, whose origin goes back so far 
as to be lost in antiquity, still prevail in the Illinois 
courts. 

Of course, if an act of the Legislature conflicts with 
any portion of the Common Law, the acl stands and 
has the effecl of repealing the custom which it contra- 
venes. 

s. Criminal Cases— It* a person is arrested on the 
charge of committing a crime, it is a principle of 
American law that penalty cannot l>e inflicted until 

the guilt of the accused is proved by a trial before a 

court of law. This court consists of a judge, who pre- 
sides and decides questions of law. ami a jury, which 
(in Illinois) decides questions both of law and fact. 
In most States the jury decides merely questions of 
fact. 

The judge is an officer of the state who holds office 
for a definite term of years. 

The jury consists of citizens who are selected to act 
for a given trial, or during- a particular session of the 
court. 

5). Civil Cases — If there is a dispute between peo- 
ple as to their rights, and they are unable to agree, the 
dispute may be settled by a trial in a court of law. 
The court usually consists, as in criminal cases, of 
judge and jury. 

10. Appeals — It is also the custom to allow either 
party to a suit, if he is dissatisfied with the decision, 
to appeal to a higher court (pp. 110, 120, 1:2:2V 

11. Grades of Courts — The judiciary department, 
then, must contain a series of courts, so that appeals 



118 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

may go from one to the next higher, with one highest 
of all for the whole State. 

The lowest courts are local, and will be described 
under the head of " Local Government " (pp. 130, 132). 

The State courts are of three grades — Circuit, Ap- 
pellate, and Supreme. 

CIRCUIT COURTS 

12. Circuits — The State is divided by act of the 
Legislature into (at present) thirteen circuits, outside 
of Cook County. Each consists of contiguous counties, 
and they are approximately equal in population. The 
judges of the circuit courts are elected by the people 
of the respective circuits * (Art. VI., § 15). 

13. Circuit Judges — Election — Three judges are 
chosen in each circuit, for a term of six years. The 
election is held the first- Monday of June (Art. YL, 
§ 12). The first under this law was in 1879. The pur- 
pose in holding the election in the summer is to keep 
the selection of judges, as far as possible, free from 
party politics, f 

14. Qualifications — The qualifications for election 
to a circuit judgeship are age, citizenship, and resi- 
dence. The candidate must be a citizen of the United 
States, at least twenty-five years of age, a resident of 
the State five years next preceding the election, and a 
resident of the circuit at the time of the election 
Art. YL, § 17). 

1 5. Salary— The salary of circuit judges is $3,500, 
except in Cook County (p. 119), in which the salary is 

*Rev. Stat., c. 37, § 72. f Rev. Stat., c. 37, § 75. 



Til E -J r DIC I All Y lig 

$7,000. The salary cannot be increase I or diminished 
during the term for which a judge Is elected (Art. 
VI, § 16).* 

10. Tonus — Each judge in a circuit holds court 
successively in the various county seat&f It is for this 
reason that the court is called circuit. The judges ar- 
range among themselves the order in which they si will 
severally visit the different counties. The law fixes the 
dates of holding court at each county seat X (Art. VI., 

§ 14). 

17. Jurisdiction — The original jurisdiction of a cir- 
cuit court extends to all cases in law and equity 
(Art. VI., §12). The appellate jurisdiction of the 
circuit court covers appeals from county courts and 
probate courts, with certain exceptions, and from jus- 
tices of the peace.§ 

18. Courts of Cook County — Cook County, on ac- 
count of its great population, constitutes a judicial cir- 
cuit, and has a Large number of judges. Besides the 
circuit judges, there are also the judges of a superior 
court, with similar jurisdiction. 

APPELLATE COURTS 

19. Appellate Districts — The State is divided by 

act of the General Assembly into four appellate court 

districts || (Art. VI., § 11). Cook County is one. The 
others are the three former Supreme Court grand 
divisions — Northern, Central, and Southern. In each 

*Rev. Static. 53, §§ 3. 61. \ Rev. Stat., e. 37, § 74. 

% Rev. Stat., c. 37, §§ 77-78m. 

§ Rev. Stat., c. 37, £§ 212, 226 ; c. 79, § 115. 

1 Rev. Stat., c. 37, §§ 18, 1. 



120 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

district there is an appellate court of three judges. 
The places of meeting are Chicago, Ottawa, Spring- 
field, and Mt. Vernon. 

20. Selection — The three judges are selected by the 
Supreme Court from the circuit judges of the district. 
In Cook County they are selected- from circuit or su- 
perior judges.* 

21. Jurisdiction — The appellate court has no orig- 
inal jurisdiction, f but hears only appeals and writs of 
error from the lower courts — the circuit courts, the 
superior courts of Cook County, county and probate 
courts, and city courts — as regulated by statute. Crim- 
inal cases, cases involving the validity of a law, and 
some others are not appealed to the appellate courts, 
but go directly to the Supreme Court. In cases of 
minor importance the decision of the appellate court is 
final. Others may be further appealed to the Supreme 
Court. But if the appellate court thinks proper, any 
case decided by it may be appealed to the Supreme 
Court. 

22. Organization — The three judges of an appellate 
court sit together, choosing one of their own number 
to preside. Two are necessary for a quorum, and the 
concurrence of two for the validity of a decision. 
There is no jury.+ 

TIIE SUPREME COURT 

23. The Highest Court of the State is the Supreme 
Court, Avhich holds its sessions in the capitol at Spring- 
field (Art. VI., §§ 2-10). 

* Rev. Stat., c. 37, § 22. f Rev. Stat., c. 37, § 25, 

\ Rev. Stat., e. 37, §£23, 24. 



THE JUDICIARY 121 

24. Election — The Supreme Court consists of seven 
judges elected by the people lor a term of nine years. 
The election is held on the firsl Monday in June. They 

are not all chosen at the same time. Tin- term of one 
expires in L900, of a second in L903, and of the re- 
mainder in L906. This comes about because under 
the Constitution of l s l^ the Supreme Courl consisted 
of three judges, elected for nine years, one being chosen 
every three years. The Constitution of L870 added 
Pour more, and prescribed thai they should he elected 
for the next ensuing nine-year term. 

25, Districts — For the election, the State is divided 
into seven districts, and each district elects on< judge.* 
The term of the judge chosen in the fifth district ex- 
pires in ll)(M>, and that of the judge chosen in the fourth 
district in L903. 

2G. Qualifications— The qualifications for election 
are citizenship, age, and residence (Art. VI., § 3). The 
candidate must at the time of his election Oca citizen 
of the United States, at least thirty years old, a resident 
o\' the State for the five years next preceding the ('lec- 
tion, and a resident of the district in which he is chosen. 

27. Salary — The salary of supreme court judges as 
fixed by the Legislature is $5,000 f (Art. VI.. §7). This 
salary cannot in any case be increased or diminished 
during the term for which a judge was elected. 

28. Organization — The judges meet together, four 
constituting a quorum, and the concurrence of four 
is necessary to a decision. They elect one of their 
number as chief justice. The court appoints a reporter 
for the term of six years (Art. VI., §§ 2, 6, 9). 

*Rcv. Stat., c. 37, § 2, f Rev. Stat,, c. 53, § 60. 



122 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

29. Tonus — The court holds four terms a year. Until 
1897 the court met at three places : Springfield, Ot- 
tawa, and Mt. Yernon. The State was divided into 
three grand divisions, and the court met in each. Now 
the meeting is at the seat of government, Springfield.* 

30. Jurisdiction — The Supreme Court has original 
jurisdiction in cases relating to the revenue of the 
State and to cases of mandamus and habeas corpus 
(Part I., pp. 88, 160). In all other cases the court has 
appellate jurisdiction (Art. VI., § 2). 

A writ of mandamus is an order issued by the court 
directing some one to do a certain act. 

Appeals come to the Supreme Court from county and 
probate courts, from circuit courts and the superior 
and criminal courts of Cook County, from city courts, 
and from appellate courts, as prescribed by statute, f 
The decision of the Supreme Court is final, unless under 
circumstances which permit appeal to the Supreme 
Court of the United States. 

*Rev. Stat., c. 37, § 1. 

f Rev. Stat., c. 37, §§ 257, 227, 213, 88, 25. 



CHAPTER IX 
LOCAL GOVERNMENT— COUNTIES AND TOWNS 

POLITICAL DIVISIONS OF THE STATE 
(See also Chap. III.) 

1. By Local Self-government in the United States 
we mean the government of each subdivision of a state 
by the people who inhabit that subdivision. It is the 
American practice to extend local self-government in 
this sense as far as possible. 

There are many matters of public concern which are, 
however, of public concern only for the people of a 
portion of the State. These people, then, ought to 
regulate such matters as they please. Things which 
interest the whole State, on the other hand, belong to 
the whole State to manage. 

2. Counties — The State is divided into counties 
(p. 28). In Illinois there are now 102 counties. The 
first county organized within the present limits of the 
State, as has been said before, was St. Clair County. It 
was organized by General Arthur St. Clair, Governor 
of the old Northwest Territory, in 1790, and was 
named from him. As the population of the State grew 
and spread, this county was subdivided, and more 
counties were formed. They bear the names, some of 
eminent politicians, statesmen, or soldiers, like Wash- 
ington, Hamilton, Knox, Jefferson, Jackson ; some of 
men prominent in State affairs, like Menard (from the 



124 TEE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

first lieutenant-governor), Bond (from the first gov- 
ernor of the State), La Salle (from the famous French 
explorer); some from the names of rivers or Indian 
tribes, like Kankakee, Sangamon, Winnebago, Iro- 
quois. 

3. Towns and Townships — The counties are in 
many cases divided into toAvns, often loosely called 
townships (p. 30). These are not the same. Even if 
the boundaries of the town coincide with those of a 
congressional township, it must be remembered that 
even then township and town are different things. 
The one is a piece of land irrespective of whether it 
has inhabitants or not. The other may be the same 
piece of land, but it is that land inhabited — it is a town 
only because it is inhabited, as a convenience for local 
government. In short, a town is a unit of local gov- 
ernment in a county ; a township is a unit of measure 
in the land survey, Avithout any regard to counties or 
States. 

COUNTY GOVERNMENT 

4. The counties are units of local government into 
which the State is divided. Counties are formed 
merely for convenience of government. Each county, 
then, has a government of its own. 

5. The Comity Board — In the county govern- 
ment the legislative and executive branches are not so 
sharply divided from each other as is the case in the 
State. The county legislature is the County Board. 
In a county which is divided into towns, the County 
Board is called the Board of Supervisors." In counties 
not so divided and in Cook County, the board is called 

*llev. Stat., c. 34, § 23. 



LOCAL GOVERNMENT— COUNTIES AND TOWNS 125 

the Board of County Commissioners. ButtheCounty 
Board is more than a legislative body. It also has a 
number of administrative duties. In this respect it is 
quite like the various State executive boards which we 
have already examined. Indeed it is for this reason 
that the name " board " is applied to the comity Legis- 
lature. 

6. The Board <>r Supervisors — A Board <>!' Super- 
visors is composed <>f one supervisor from each town, 
elected for one year a1 the annua] town meeting the 
first Tuesday in April. Of course, then, there areas 
many supervisors in the board as there are towns in 
the county. The hoard chooses its own chairman. A 
majority of all the supervisors forms a quorum. 

7. Board of County Commissioners — A Board of 
County Commissioners is composed of three prisons. 
elected by the people of. the county for a term of three 
years* (Art, X., s' »'»). One commissioner is elected 
annually, on the Tuesday after the lirst Monday in 
November. The board, therefore, like the State Senate, 
is a continuous body. They elect their own chairman. 
A majority of the members forms a quorum. 

8. Board of County Commissioners in Cook 
County — The Board of ( Jounty ( lommissioners in ( look 
County consists of fifteen persons, ten Erom Chicago, 
elected by the voters of Chicago, and live from the 
remaining towns of the comity, elected by the voters of 
those towns. The term is two years. All are chosen 
at each general election, in November. The president 
of the board is elected by the people, being one of the 
fifteen designated for that office. f 

* Rev. Stat., c. 46, § 28. f Rev. Stat., e. 31, §§ 60, 61. 



126 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

9. Powers and Duties of County Boards — The 

County Board manages the public buildings and money 
of the county, lays taxes for county purposes, and per- 
forms such other duties as the law may direct. The 
public buildings of the county are a court-house and 
jail, and sometimes others — for instance, an insane 
asylum, work-house (for criminals), and poor-house. 
The County Board also equalizes assessments for 
the county, as the State Board does for the State 
(p. 112).* 

10. County Executive and Judicial Officers — The 
duties of the County Board are, as has been said, 
largely executive. But there are also county officers 
whose duties are wholly executive. There are others 
whose duties are partly executive and partly judicial. 

Each county has a clerk, treasurer, sheriff, coroner, 
State's attorney, superintendent of schools, surveyor, 
and clerk of the circuit court (Art. X., § 8 ; Art. YL, 
§ 22 ; Art. YIIL, § 5). 

In counties not under town organization, the treas- 
urer acts as assessor and the sheriff as collector of taxes, f 
In counties with a population of 60,000 or more there 
is also a recorder of deeds. 

In Cook County there are also a clerk of the supe- 
rior court and a clerk of the criminal court. In coun- 
ties which have a probate judge there is also a probate 
clerk. 

Each of these officers is elected by the people at one 
of the general elections for a term of four years, the 
term beginning the first Monday in December next 



* Rev. Stat., c. 34, §§ 25, 26 ; c. 120, §§ 97, 98. 
f Rev. Stat., c. 46, §§ 16-27. 



LOCAL GOVERNMENT— COUNTIES AND TOWNS 127 

following the election. The treasurer and sheriff are 
ineligible for a second successive term. 

The treasurer, recorder of deeds, surveyor. State's 
attorney, and clerks of circuit and superior courts are 
elected at the same time as the governor. The others 
are elected two years later. 

11. No Supreme Executive Officer — Their is in 
the county no one officer vested with supreme execu- 
tive power, and so corresponding to the governor of 
the State. So far as such power exists in the county 
it is in the hands of the County Board. But the 
county officers are to a large extent independent of 
the board, just as the State heads of departments are 
of the governor (p. 74). 

12. The County Clerk keeps the records both of the 

County Board and of the county court.* lie records 
and issues warrants on the treasurer, issues marriage 
licenses, keeps records of assessment of taxes and fur- 
nishes the same to tax collectors, and keeps such other 
records as may be required by law. 

13. The County Treasurer receives and keeps 
the money of the county, and pays it out as may be 
authorized by law. f He has his accounts examined 
and verified by the County Board every six months. 

14. The Sheriff is the chief peace officer of the 
county. J It is his duty to prevent or suppress 
public disorder or crime, and to arrest offenders. 

lie also serve's and executes all writs, warrants, and 
other judicial orders legally entrusted to him. 



* Rev. Stat., c. 25, § 2; c. 35, §§ 9, 10; c. 120. 
f Rev. Stat., c. 36; c. 120, §144. 
% Rev. Stat., c. 125, §§ 14-19. 



128 THE G0VERN31ENT OF ILLINOIS 

He attends all courts of record held in the county 
and obeys the lawful orders of such courts. 

He is the custodian of the court-house and jail, and 
performs such other duties as may be required by law. 

The sheriff appoints deputies to aid him in his 
duties. 

15. The Coroner ascertains the cause of death of 
persons who are supposed to have died by violence, 
accident, or any unlawful means. * This investigation 
is called an inquest, and the coroner is aided by a jury 
of six men, whom he selects. If the verdict of the jury 
incriminates any one, it is the duty of the coroner to 
cause an arrest. 

The coroner is also a conservator of the peace. He 
acts as sheriff in case of vacancy in that office, or in 
any case in which the sheriff is interested. 

1G. The State's Attorney is the official lawyer of 
the county government. f He manages for the county 
all suits at law to Avhich the county is a party. It is 
his duty to see that persons whom he believes to be 
criminals are indicted by the grand jury and arrested, 
and he conducts the case against the accused at the 
trial. He is the legal adviser of the officers of the 
county government. 

17. The County Superintendent of Schools is 
entrusted with the general supervision of the public 
schools of the county. % He inspects the schools, ad- 
vises teachers and schools' officers, holds teachers' 
institutes, examines and licenses teachers, and per- 
forms many other duties. 



* Rev. Stat., c. 81. f Rev. Stat., c. 14, § 5. 

\ Rev. Stat., c. 122, §§ 19, 20. 



LOCAL GOVERNMENT— COUNTIES AND TOWNS 12<> 

\H. The County Surveyor makes surveys of land 
at the request of any individual, and keeps records of 
the same 

li>. The Clerks of Courts keep record of the pro- 
ceedings of their respective courts, and of all matters 
relating t hereto. \ 

20. The Recorder of Deeds keeps records of all 
papers relating to the ownership of lands deeds, mort- 
gages, and the like. J In counties with a population of 
less than 60,000, the clerk of the circuit court acts as 
recorder of deeds. 

It will he seen that tin 1 county clerk, sheriff, and 
coroner are partly executive and partly judicial in their 
functions, that the treasurer, recorder of deeds, sur- 
veyor, and superintendent of schools are wholly execu- 
tive. The State's attorney and clerks of courts are 
judicial officers. 

21. The Torrens Laud Title System— The land 

records of each county show the title to every piece of 
land within the county limits. These records are very 
complicated, as it is necessary to enter in the hooks 
every transaction relating to any real (state. For 
this reason when an owner has occasion to prove that 
there is no Haw in his title, if he wishes to sell his 
land or to borrow money on mortgage, for instance, 
it often takes much time and costs much money to 
accomplish his purpose. 

A recent law — called usually the kk Torrens " law, 
from the name of Sir Robert Torrens, an Australian 
who put the principle in its present form — is intended 
to simplify this process. ^ 

* Rev. Stat., c. 133, § 4. f Rev. Stat., c. 25, § 13. 

\ Rev. Stat., c. 115. § Act of May 1, 1897. 

9 



130 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

Each county may adopt the plan or not, as may be 
decided by the voters at a general election. 

In a county in which the system is in operation the 
recorder of deeds is made registrar of land titles. Any 
one who has an interest in real estate may have the 
title registered in the office of the registrar. That 
officer examines the title, and if he decides that it is 
a good one he issues a certificate of title. A similar 
certificate is given thereafter each time the land is sold 
or in any way encumbered with debt. This makes 
the whole process of land transfer much more simple 
and safe. 

A person registering his title pa}^s a fee. The fees 
thus received are kept by the county treasurer as a 
fund from which damages are paid to any one who 
suffers loss by a wrongful decision with reference to 
any title. 

22. Compensation — County officers are paid either 
in salaries or fees, or both. In no case must the salary 
exceed the amount of the fees collected in the course 
of duty (Art. X., §§ 9, 10). 

23. The County Judiciary — Each county has a 
county court. The presiding officer is the county 
judge (Art. YL,§§ 18,19). 

The county judge is elected by the people of the 
county for a term of four years. The election occurs 
at the general election midway in the governor's term, 
and the judge takes office the first Monday in Decem- 
ber following. The salary is fixed by the County 
Board.* 

The county court is held in the court-house at the 
county seat. 

*Kev. Stat., c. 37, §89, etc. 



LOCAL GOVERNMENT— COUNTIES AN I) TOWNS 131 

The jurisdiction is of two kinds— law and probate. 

The law jurisdiction is concurrent with thai of the 
circuit court in all matters of the same kind as arc 
triable in the court of a justice of the peace (p. L34), 
provided the amount in dispute shall not exceed $1,000 ; 
and in all criminal cases in which the offence charged 
is not an infamous crime (p. 134). 

24. Probate Courts— The probate jurisdiction ex- 
tends to the proving (" probate ") of wills: the settle- 
ment of the estates of deceased persons, whether they 
leave a will or not; the appointment of guardians; 
proceedings for the collection of tuxes: and some 
other matters. 

In counties having a population of over 50,000 the 
General Assembly may establish separate probate 
courts (Art. VI., § 20).* The law in fact puts the 
limit at 70,000. 

The probate judge is elected at the same time as the 
county judge, for the same term. The salary is fixed 
by the County Board. His jurisdiction is the probate 
jurisdiction of the county court. 

TOWN GOVERNMENT 

25. Towns are subdivisions of a county, organized 
for convenience of local government, f Nearly all the 
counties of the State now have the town system of 
government. 

As in the State and the county, there are the three 
branches of government — legislative, executive, and 
judicial. 

*Rev. Stat,, c. 37, § 216. \ Rev. Stat,, c. 139. 



132 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

26. The Town Legislature — The legislature of the 
State and that of the county are representative bodies, 
elected by the voters. In the town, on the other 
hand, the legislature is the voters themselves, assem- 
bled in mass meeting. 

The annual town meeting is held on the first Tues- 
day in April.* Towns wholly included within the 
limits of a city hold the election on the same day as 
the city election (p. 138). The town clerk elected the 
year preceding acts as clerk of the meeting. A chair- 
man is chosen, called the moderator. 

The business of the town meeting is the election of 
town officers and legislation for the town. Legisla- 
tion may consist of laying taxes for roads, bridges, 
and a few other purposes, providing for keeping the 
roads clear of stray cattle, and a few other things. 
At the annual meeting the officers present their reports 
for the year past. 

Special meetings of the town may be called when 
necessary. 

27. The Town Executive Officers — The town ex- 
ecutive officers are the supervisor, clerk, assessor, col- 
lector, and three highway commissioners. They are 
elected at the annual town meeting by ballot, the 
supervisor for two years, the highway commissioners 
for three years, and the others for one year. 

28. The Supervisor is a member of the County 
Board — receives and pays out county money (except 
that for roads and bridges), is overseer of the town 
poor, and performs some other duties, f 



* Rev. Stat., c. 139, §§ 51, 40, 138, etc. 
fRev. Stat., c. 139, §101, etc. 



LOCAL GOVERNMENT— COUNTIES AND TOWN& 133 

The supervisors of Cook County are not members of 
the County Board. 

In populous towns assistant supervisors are elected, 
who are members of the County Board, but have no 
duties as town officers.* 

29. The Town cicrk keeps the records of town meet- 
ings, certifies to the county clerk the amount of taxes 
required fortown purposes, and has a few other duties. 

80. The Assessor estimate's the value of the prop- 
erty <>f each taxpayer in the town, and renders an 

exact statement of the same to the county clerk. The 
taxes to he raised, whether State, county, or town, are 
levied on the taxpayers in proportion to the assessed 
value of their property. 

.'51. The Collector collects the tax from each tax- 
payer, and turns the money thus collected over to the 
town officers authorized to receive the same (the super- 
visor and the highway commissioners) ami to the 
county collector (p. \2ti) respectively. The part of 
the tax which is for the county and the State noes to 
the county collector. 

iV2. One Highway Commissioner is elected each 
year.f The three commissioners choose one of their 
number as treasurer, lie receives the money paid in 
by the collector for roads and bridges, and pays it out 
on the order of the commissioners — two being a 
quorum. The roads and bridges in the town are 
under the charge of the Highway Commission. The 
road tax may be paid in money or in labor if the voters 
so decide. X 



* Rev. Stat., c. 139, § 110. f Rev. Stat., c. 121, 

{Rev. Stat.,c. 121, §80. 



134 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

33. The Town Judiciary Officers — Election and 

Tenure — The town court is that of the justice of the 
pence. The justices are elected by the people for a 
term of four years (Art. VI,, § 21). There are at least 
two chosen in each town, at the April town meeting 
next following the election for governor. An addi- 
tional justice is elected for each thousand inhabitants 
in excess of two thousand, until the whole number 
reaches five — which is the greatest number allowed to 
any town.* 

34. Chicago Justices — The Chicago justices are 
appointed by the governor, with the approval of the 
Senate, on nomination by the judges (circuit, superior, 
county, and probate) in Cook County, f 

35. Jurisdiction — The jurisdiction of justices of 
the peace extends to civil cases of certain kinds in 
which the value in dispute does not exceed two hun- 
dred dollars, to misdemeanors in which the penalty is 
a fine not exceeding the same amount, to cases of 
assault and battery, and other minor matters. X 

36. Jury — Either party to a trial in a justice's 
court may demand a jury, which shall consist of any 
number from six to twelve, as either party may 
decide. § 

37. A Misdemeanor is any offence against the laws 
which is not a felony. || 

38. A Felony is an offence punishable with death or 
imprisonment in the penitentiary. This is what is 
meant by an infamous crime. 

39. Assault and Battery is the unlawful beating of 



* Rev. Stat., c. 79, § 1. fRev. Stat.. § 2. % Rev. Stat., § 16. 
; v. Stat.. § 48. i Llev. Stat., c. 38, £§ 277, 278. 



LOCAL GOVERNMENT— COUNTIES AND TOWNS 135 

another. Ami nit is an attempt to do violent injury 
to another coupled with a present ability to do it.* 

40. Constables are the town police officers. There 
is one elected for each justice of the peace, at the same 
time and for the same term. 

The constable is the peace officer of the town, as 
the sheriff is of the county. t It is the constable's 
duty to put down public disorder, to arrest persons 
suspected of offenses against the laws. He also exe- 
cutes Avarrants. 

A warrant is a judicial order to a peace officer, 
authorizing search or arrest. 

41. Town Boards — The town officers form certain 
boards for specific purposes. 

42. The Board of Town Auditors consists of the 
supervisor, town clerk, and justices of the peace. This 
board examines all of the town accounts and certifies 
to such as it approves. % 

4J5. The Town Board of Health consists of the 
supervisor, assessor, and town clerk. They take pre- 
cautions against the spread of contagious diseases.,^ 

44. The Town Board of Appointment consists 
of the justices of the peace, the supervisor, and the 
town clerk. They have power to make appointments 
to fill vacancies in town offices. || 

COUNTIES NOT UNDER TOWN GOVERNMENT 

45. The Board of Comity Commissioners is the 

county legislature (p. 12-i). The executive and judicial 

* Rev. Stat., c. 38, § 21. \ Rev. Stat., c. 38, § 840. 

\ Rev. Stat., c. 139, § 118, etc. 
| Rev. Stat., c. 139, § 127. | Rev. Stat., c. 139, § 97. 



136 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

officers are the same as in counties under town gov- 
ernment. 

Counties not under town government are divided 
into election precincts by the County Board.* 

The County Board appoints a county assessor, and 
he appoints deputies to aid him.f 

Justices of the peace and constables are elected in 
each election precinct, in all respects as is provided in 
the case of towns. The election is on the Tuesday 
after the first Monday in November, in the year fol- 
lowing the election of the governor. \ 

Of the 102 counties in Illinois, all but nineteen are 
under town government at the present time (1899). 
The nineteen are : Alexander, Calhoun, Cass, Edwards, 
Hardin, Henderson, Johnson, Massac, Menard, Mon- 
roe, Morgan, Perry, Pope, Pulaski, Kandolph, Scott, 
Union, Wabash, Williamson. 

A glance at the map will show that the most of 
these are in the southern part of the State. The first 
American settlers of Illinois came into the southern 
counties, largely from Kentucky and Virginia. They 
brought with them Southern ideas of local govern- 
ment, one of which was the county commissioner plan 
of governing counties. The township and town meet- 
ing originated in New England, and these ideas were 
brought by Eastern settlers into the northern part of 
the State. From this portion the system, first per- 
mitted by the Constitution of 1848, has spread until 
now it includes eighty-three counties. 



* Rev. Stat., c. 40, §§ 29, 30. f lie v. Stat., c. 120, § 72. 
} Rev. stat., c. 7», § 1. 



CHAPTER X 
LOCAL GOVERNMENT— MUNICIPALITIES 

CITIES AND VILLAGES 

1. .The plan of local government for counties and 
towns is adapted to people Living not very close to- 
gether in a rather Large area of country. When 
homes are more crowded, however, so that quite a 
number of people are Living in a rather small area, a 
different plan is desirable. The conditions of Life are 
different. There is more danger of fire, and disease, 
and thieves; the streets need to be better paved; 
there has to be a better system of getting rid of gar- 
bage; drainage is more difficult; scliools are more 
largely attended and usually demand higher grades of 
work. For these reasons the laws provides special 
system of local government for cities and villages. 

The only difference between a city and a village is 
in the number of people. A small city is not very 
different from a large village. But a large city and a 
small village differ in their needs even more than the 
village does from a farming community. For this 
reason the law recognizes different plans for the gov- 
ernment of a city from that for the government of a 
village. 

CITY GOVERNMENT 

2. General Law — The government of cities in Illi- 
nois must be provided by a general law (Art, XL, 



138 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

§ 1).* Thus special charters are forbidden. There are 
still in force some provisions of special charters granted 
before the Constitution of 1 87< > was adopted. But since 
L870 no such charters have been possible. 

The general law provides for a government, like 
that of the State, of counties, and of towns, which shall 
have the three branches — legislative, executive, and 
judicial. 

:*. City Elections — City elections are held on the 
third Tuesday in April ; cities, however, which include 
a town or towns within their limits, hold their elec- 
tion on the first Tuesday in April. This is the case 
in Chicago. f 

THE CITY LEGISLATURE 

4. The Common Council is the city legislature. 
The members of the Common Council are called alder- 
men. The city is divided into wards, as the State is 
into counties— excepting that the wards practically do 
not govern themselves. The number of wards is one- 
half the number of aldermen to which the city is 
entitled. A city may have not less than six or more 
than seventy aldermen, depending on the population.^ 

Each ward elects two aldermen for a term of two 
years — one being elected each year. Thus the Com- 
mon Council, like the State Senate, is a continuous 
body. Cities may, if they please, adopt a plan of 
minority representation in the Common Council. 

The election is held on the third Tuesday in April — 
excepting in cities which include a town within their 

* Rev. Stat., e. 24. t R ev. Stat, c. 24, § 48. 

% Rev. Stat., § 30. 



LOCAL GOVERNMENT-MUNICIPALITIES 139 

limits, in which the election is on the first Tuesday in 
April. 

The mayor (p. L40) presides over the Council,* and 
has the veto power, like that of the governor. Be 
voles only in case of a tie, like the lieutenant-gov- 
ernor. 

The laws passed by the Common ( Jouncil are called 
ordinances.^ 

5. Powers mid Duties — The powers of the Com- 
mon Council are very numerous. % They may, as a 
whole, be grouped under the following heads: Fir 
nance, including the laying of taxes for city purposes 
and making appropriations from the city treasury : 
streets, including their paving and drainage, keeping 
them clean, and regulating the whole matter of 
transit, especially as relates to street railroads; public 
health and comfort, including the supply of the city 
with water and light, provision for sewers and the 
disposal of garbage, sanitary regulations and public 
recreation; th< regulation of commerce, for the pre- 
vention of frauds and public inconvenience ; education, 
by providing for free schools in all proper parts of the 
city ; public safety, by providing for the protection 
of the persons and property of citizens, especially 
through the police and fire departments. 

The various matters included under these heads are 
administered by such executive officers as may be 
entrusted with them by the law of the State or by 
ordinance of the Common Council. 

* Rev. Stat. , c. 24, §§ 53, 54. f Rev. Stat., § 4G. 

{Rev. Stat., §62. 



140 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 



THE CITY EXECUTIVE 

6. The State law provides for the election of the 
following city executive officers : A mayor, city clerk, 
city attorney, and city treasurer. They are chosen at 
the city election in April of the odd numbered years. 
Their term is two years. f 

The law authorizes the Common Council to provide 
by a two-thirds vote for such other officers f as may 
be deemed expedient, and leaves to the discretion of 
the Council whether such officers shall be elected by 
the people or appointed by the mayor with the ap- 
proval of the Council. 

7. The Mayor is the chief executive officer of the 
city. % He must be a citizen of the United States, 
and a voter and resident in the city. He is the con- 
servator of the peace of the city, and as such has the 
powers of a sheriff. He may remove from office, un- 
der certain restrictions, any officer appointed by him. 
Like the governor, he recommends measures of legisla- 
tion, in his annual message, or special messages, to the 
Common Council. He performs such other duties as 
may be required by law or ordinance, and he takes 
care that the laws and ordinances are faithfully exe- 
cuted. 

If in case of vacancy in the office of mayor, it is 
filled by a special election if the vacancy is a full 
year or over — otherwise the Common Council elects 
one of its members as acting mayor for the unexpired 
term. 

* Rev. Stat., c. 24, §§ 72, 48, 49. 
f Rev. Stat., c. 24, § 73. % Rev. Stat., c. 24, § 14, etc. 



LOCAL GOVERNMENT -MUNICIPALITIES 141 

In case of the temporary absence from the city, or 
disability, of the mayor, the Common Council elects 
oik' of its members as mayor pro tern/pore. 

8. The City Clerk is clerk- of the Common Council 
and keeps its official records and papers. 

U. The City Attorney is in charge of the city 
law business -corresponding to the attorney-general 
for the State and to the State's attorney for counties. 

10. The City Treasurer keeps t lie city funds and 
pays them out as directed by law. He makes monthly 
statements and an annual report of the state of the 
treasury. 

Besides the above statutory officers, cities establish 
such others as they may need nnderthe power granted 
to the ( 'onimon ( 'ouncil. 

11. Executive Departments in Chicago— In ac- 
cordance with this power, the city of Chicago has 
organized a number of executive departments, entrust- 
ing to each the administration of a particular branch 

of the city business. As a rule the head of each de- 
partment is appointed by the mayor, with the consent 
of the Common Council ; the tenure of office is two 
years — and heads of departments appoint their sub- 
ordinates with the approval of the mayor. The de- 
partments are those of finance, public works, buildings, 
law, health, police, and lire, besides several offices of 
inspection. Education is under the charge of a sepa- 
rate board, in accordance with the State laws. 

12. The Department of Finance includes the 
comptroller, the treasurer, the collector, and their 
clerks and assistants. The treasurer is elected by the 
people (p. 140). The comptroller is head of the 
department, both comptroller and collector being 



142 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

appointed by the mayor, with the approval of the 
Common Council.* 

13. The Comptroller — The duty of the comp- 
troller is to exercise a general supervision -over the 
financial affairs of the city. He is the fiscal agent of 
the city, and as such has charge of all valuable papers, 
like deeds, mortgages, and contracts, which are the 
property of the city. He audits the accounts of the 
city, and in general is responsible for fiscal administra- 
tion. He appoints his own clerks with the approval 
of the mayor, f 

14. The City Treasurer is a statutory officer, and 
his duties have been mentioned (p. 141). He appoints 
and dismisses his clerks and assistants. % 

15. The City Collector takes charge of the collec- 
tion of special assessments (p. 143) and has such other 
duties as may be assigned to him by law or ordinance. 
He makes daily payments to the treasurer, and files 
a monthly statement with the comptroller. The col- 
lector is appointed by the mayor, with the approval 
of the city council. § 

16. The Department of Public Works has charge 
of the engineering and similar work belonging to 
the city.J The head of the department is the com- 
missioner of public works. The other officers are the 
city engineer, the superintendent of streets, the super- 
intendent of Avater, the superintendent of sewerage, 
the superintendent of special assessments, and the su- 
perintendent of maps. The names of these officers 
perhaps sufficiently define their duties. 

* Laws and Ordinances of Chicago, § 1001 (see Appendix, p. 260.) 
f L. «t 0., .^ 1010, etc. {L. &0., §1030. 

I, & 0., § 1037. I L. & 0., §§ 1041, 1047. 



LOCAL GO VERN3IENT—MUXT('II>A LTTTES 1 43 

"Special assessments" are assessments for taxes 
levied on particular pieces of real estate to pay for 
public improvements, such asstreet paving, from which 
the property taxed derives special benefit. 

17. Department of Buildings — The commissioner 
of buildings* has charge of the inspection of all build- 
ings erected within the city limits, to insure safe con- 
struction, lie also inspects elevators. lie has several 
inspectors and assistants to aid him in this work. 

The city ordinances make certain regulations with 
regard to the construction <>(' buildings — such as 
requiring suitable strength, forbidding wooden struc- 
tures within certain limits, requiring fire escapes <>n 
hotels and similar buildings, requiring elevators t<> 
have proper construction and appliances lor .safety. 
The commissioner looks after these requirements, Xo 
one can put up a building or operate an elevator in a 
public building in the city without a permit from the 
department. 

18. The Department of Law — The department 
of law f includes the corporation counsel, who is the 
head of the department, the city attorney, and the 
prosecuting attorney. The city attorney is elected by 
the people (p. 140), The prosecuting attorney is 
appointed by the mayor, on recommendation of the 
corporation counsel and the city attorney, with the 
approval of the city council. The corporation counsel 
has general charge of all law business in which the 
city is interested. The city attorney drafts ordinances 
at the request of the city council, or of any of its com- 
mittees, and draws up legal papers, like deeds and 

*L. &0., §1107. |L. &0., §1149. 



144 TEE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

contracts, when so desired by the head of any city 
department. The prosecuting attorney conducts all 
suits against violators of city ordinances. 

19. The Department of Health— The head of this 
department is the commissioner of health.* The 
superintendent of police and the city physicians are 
ex-qffido members of the department. The city physi- 
cian is appointed by the mayor with the approval of 
the city council. The duty of the department is to 
exercise general supervision over the sanitary condi- 
tion of the citj. 

20. The Department of Police — The department 
is under the control of the superintendent of police as 
its head.f Like other heads of departments he is 
appointed by the mayor with the approval of the city 
council. He appoints the members of the force, with 
the approval of the mayor. 

It is the duty of the department to enforce the laws 
and ordinances and the orders of the mayor, to pro- 
tect the rights of persons and property, to make 
arrest of law breakers. The police in a city have the 
same duties as the constable in a village or the sheriff 
in a county. 

21. The Fire Department — The fire marshal is at 
the head of this department.^; He is appointed by the 
mayor, with the approval of the city council. lie 
appoints all officers and members of the department, 
with the approval of the mayor. He may remove any 
officer above the rank of captain, with the consent of 
the mayor. Any other officer or member of the 
department the marshal may remove at his own 

* L. & O., § 1176. \h.& 0., § 1228. \ L. & 0., § 1268. 



LOCAL GO VERNMENT—M I 'M< IPAL1 TIES \ | 5 

pleasure. The fire marshal lias absolute control of 
this department, and for tins reason he is held strictly 
accountable for its discipline and efficiency. Tin- 
Chicago fire department, i1 may be added, is admirably 
managed and is highly efficient. 

22. Offices of Inspection — Besides the executive 
departments, there are several executive office* 
inspection. It is their purpose to protect the people 
of the city against certain dangers against which it 
would not be easy otherwise to guard. Aj3 a rule the 

name of the office defines its functions. 

There is an inspector of steam boilers* an inspector 
offish^ an inspector of rn/Uk 9 \ an inspector of gas 
meters^ an inspt ctor of oils 9 § and an inspector of 
w< ights < i in/ a n asures. 

2.'5. The Park System — Parks are intended to he 

public pleasure grounds. Cities usually have some 
thing of the kind, and Large cities have them on i Li 
extensive scale." 

The Illinois law provides for the care of parks by 
commissions which are distinct from the city cor- 
poration. Such commissions, though local in their 
purposes, are appointed by the governor oi' the State 
or elected by the 1 people of the park district. The 
Chicago parks consist of three systems — the north 
parks, the west parks, and the south parks. 

24. Drainage Districts— One of the greatest engi- 
neering works of the State is the Chicago drainage 
canal. This is intended to connect the south branch 
of the Chicago River with the Illinois, thus reversing 



* L. & 0. 


, § 1309. 


fL. & 0.. | 1326. 


{L. & 0., § 1347. 


§L. &0. 5 


§ 1372. 


1 L. & 0. ? § 13S4. 


•; Rev. Stat., e. 105. 


10 









U6 TSE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

the current of the former river and turning the water 
of Lake Michigan towards the Mississippi. The pur- 
pose is to divert the sewage of the city of Chicago from 
the lake, whose waters form the supply of the city. 
The current of the canal will carry off the drainage of 
Chicago, and it is not impossible that some day there 
may be a ship canal as well. 

The management of this great enterprise is in the 
hands of a board of nine commissioners, elected by the 
people of the Chicago sanitary district. The term of 
office is five years, and the election is on the plan of 
minority representation.* 

VILLAGE GOVEKNMENT 

25. A village differs from a city usually in having 
a smaller number of inhabitants and a smaller area. 
Yet a large village ma} r , under the laws of this State, 
be more populous than some small cities. In such 
cases it is at the option of the people whether they 
shall have village or city government. 

2G. Organization — Any incorporated town or any 
city may become a village if the people so decide at 
an election held for that purpose, f A new village may 
be created from any contiguous territory, not exceeding 
two square miles in area, which has a population of at 
least 300, and which is not included within any other 
village, incorporated town, or city, if the people con- 
cerned so vote at an election held for that purpose.;): 

27. Form of Government — The government of a 
village differs from that of a city merely in being more 

* Rev. Stat., c. 24, § 345. f Rev. Stat., c. 24, § 178. 

\Ibid., % 182. 



LOCAL GOVERNMENT— MUNICIPALITIES 147 

simple. Of course for thai reason it is less expensive. 
There are no wards in a village. 

28. President — In place of a mayor, the chief ex- 
ecutive officer is a president.* Ee is elected by the 
people at the spring village election, for a term of 
one year. He has substantially the same powers as the 
mayor of a city. 

29. Board of Trustees — In place of a city council, 
the village legislature is a Board of Trustee%.\ There 
are six trustees, three of whom are chosen each spring 
for a term of two years. Thus the hoard is a contin- 
uous body. The village president is chairman of the 
Board of Trustees. The clerk of the board is chosen 
annually by the people, at the spring election. The 
Board of Trustees has substantially the same powers as 
a city council. 

30. Administrative offices — The president and 
Board of Trustees may appoint a treasurer, a constable, 
and one or more street commissioners, and such other 
officers as may be necessary. } The constable has the 
same powers as town constables (p. L35), and all these 
officers have their powers, duties, and compensation 
fixed by the president and the Board of Trustees. 

The annual village election is held on the third 
Tuesday in April, unless the territorial limits of the 
village coincide with those of a town, in which case 
the village election is held at the same time as the 
town election — on the first Tuesday in April. § 

31. Village Court — At the village election a police 
magistrate may be chosen, who holds office for a term 

* Rev. Stat., c. 24. § 103b. f *&«*., £s 1 ^-<- 
\ Ibid., %% 188, 189. § Ibid., § 190. 



148 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

of lour years, and has the same jurisdiction as other 
justices of the peace. * 

CIVIL SERVICE REFORM 

32. Both in cities and counties there are many public 
officials who are not elected by the people, but are ap- 
pointed by heads of departments. There are police- 
men, firemen, clerks, book-keepers, deputy sheriffs, and 
many more. 

33. The " Spoils " System — It has come to be the 
custom when an election has changed those entrusted 
with appointments for them in turn to dismiss the 
former officials and appoint new ones. These appoint- 
ments are very often made as rewards for some kind of 
political service. 

34. Disadvantages — This system has serious dis- 
advantages. Officials whose experience has made them 
valuable are liable at anytime to be dismissed in favor 
of untried men. The reason for appointment being 
primarily political work, it may easily happen that in- 
competent persons are selected for the public service. 
Continuance in office depending rather on political 
activity than on the faithful performance of official 
duty, it is often the case that such duties are neglected 
in favor of the interests of particular politicians or 
political parties. 

In order to remedy these evils, laws have been made 
which permit cities to adopt a different system. 

35. City Civil Service Commission — If the voters 
of any city vote in favor of civil service reform, it 

* Rev. Stat., c. 24, § 192. 



LOCAL GOVERNMENT— MUNICIPALITIES \\<) 

becomes the duty of the mayor to appoint three civil 
service; commissioners, Their term Is three years, one 
being appointed annually.* 

il<>. Appointments — Under rules adopted by the 
commission, applicants for office in the city depart- 
ments are examined as to their qualifications and 
graded according to the result. When the head of a 
department needs a new appointee application is made 
to the commission. The name of the candidate stand- 
ing highest on the list, is furnished, and such person is 
appointed on probation. If the work is satisfactory 
the temporary appointment is made permanent. 

J$7. Promotions — The commission is ;ilso authorized 
to make rules regulating promotions- which also un- 
der this system are to depend strictly upon proved 
merit instead of political influence. 

:*8. The Classified Service — The "classified ser- 
vice," as it is called, does not include all the city em- 
ployees, but does include a Large number of them. 

This system has been adopted by the city of Chi- 
cago. 

A similar system lias also been provided for Cook 
County.f 

*Rev. Stat., e. 21. §§446-484. 
fRev. Stat., c. 34, § 62. 



CHAPTER XI 

PUBLIC REVENUE 

THE NEED OF REVENUE 

1. Government cannot be carried on without public 
funds to pay for its cost. Officers who give their 
whole time, or the main part of their time, to public 
duties have to be paid for their services. It is only 
certain boards {e.g., those of the State University, the 
State Normal Schools, the insane asylums, and boards 
of education), the members of which are able to carry 
on their private business without material interruption, 
that receive no salaries. School buildings, sewers, 
street paving, and other public works are, of course, 
necessarily expensive. 

TAXES 

2. A Tax — As all the people of the State are bene- 
fited by the maintenance of law and order, by free 
schools, and other services rendered by the government, 
it is only proper that all the people should contribute 
towards the public funds. Such contribution is required 
by law, and is called a tax. 

:i. Poll Taxes — In some States a small tax is im- 
posed on everybody, or at least on every adult male 
person. This is called a, poll tax. There is no poll tax 
in Illinois. 



PUBLIC REVENUE 151 

4. Property Taxes — The objection to a poll tax is 

that everybody who pays it, whether rich or poor, pays 
the same amount, it seems only reasonable thai those 
who have large property interests to guard should pay 
taxes in proportion. A tax levied on property is called 
& property tax, and is the only kind in Illinois. The 
Constitution requires that "Every person and corpora- 
tion shall pay a tax in proportion to the value of his. 
her, or its properly " (Art. IX., § 1 i. 

5. Real and Personal Property- -Property is of 

two kinds — real and personal. Real property (or real 

estate) consists of immovables — land and buildings. 
Personal property consists of movables — like money, 
horses, and household furniture. 

ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION OF TAXI'S 

6. Assessment — If people are to pay taxes in pro- 
portion to the value of their property, it is necessary 
that there should be some uniform process of deter- 
mining what property each person has, and what is its 
value. This process is called assessmt nt. .1 ssi ssors are 
officers, appointed or elected, as may be required by 
law, whose duty is to assess the value of all property 
within their respective districts, and to report the same 
for record. The proper legislative authority — the State 
Legislature, the local legislative board, or the people 
in town meeting — then decides the amount of tax to 
be raised in a given year. Knowing the total amount 
of property to he assessed, and the total tax to be 
levied, it is a mere matter of arithmetic to find the 
rate per cent. Then the tax due from each property 
owner is readily computed. 



L52 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

7. Special Taxes — Besides this form of property 
tax, there are also taxes on certain kinds of business 
and on inheritances (Art. IX., § 1).* 

8. Special Assessments — Some kinds of improve- 
ments — as paving a city street, for example — are of 
more immediate benefit to particular taxpayers than 
to the community at large. Accordingly the law 
allows in such cases that the expense be met by a spe- 
cial assessment on those directly benefited (Art. IX., 

9. Sources of Taxation — The total tax levied in 
any one year consists of several parts — the State tax, 
the county tax, the city or village tax, the town tax 
(if any), besides school district taxes, park taxes, spe- 
cial assessments, and any other which may be author- 
ized by law. Any individual taxpayer, however, pays 
but one sum, which is suitably distributed among 
these objects by the public officials. 

10. Collection — When each person's tax has been 
duly determined, it is then collected by the tax col- 
lectors and paid over to the various public treasurers. 

11. Assessors — In counties not under township or- 
ganization, and in counties under township organiza- 
tion with a population of 125,000 or less, the county 
treasurer is the assessor. He has such deputy assessors 
as he may need. 

In counties with a population of 125,000 or more a 
Board of Assessors is elected by the people. There 
are five members, chosen for a term of six years, so 
arranged as to be a continuous body. 

*Rev. Stat., c. 120, § 307, etc. 
f Rev. Stat., c. 24, Art. IX. 



PUBLIC REVENUE \y.\ 

12. Board of Review— In each county there Lfl also 
& Board of Review, which has power to revise the 

action of the assessors. 

In counties under tow n ship organization with a pop- 
ulation under L25,000 the Board of Review consists of 
the county clerk, the chairman of the County Board, 
and a citizen appointed by the county judge. 

In counties not under township organization the 
Board of County Commissioners forms the Board of 
Review. 

In counties with a population of L25,< or more 

the people elect a Board of Review, consisting of three 
persons. The term of office is six years, and one of 
the three is elected each two yn^ 

The Statt Board of Equalisation has already been 
described (p. 112). 

LIMITATIONS ON THE TAXING POWER 

13. The taxing power of the various Legislative 
bodies throughout the State is limited by law. 

14. Property Exempt— The Constitution (Art. IX.. 
§ 3) provides that certain classes of property shall not 
be taxed at all.t Such property is all that belonging 
to the State, to counties or to any municipal corpora- 
tions, and any that is used exclusively for public 
benefit rather than for private gain. 

15. County Limitations — The Constitution (Art. 
IX., § 8) forbids county authorities to levy a tax at 
a rate exceeding seventy-five cents on $100 of assessed 
valuation, unless specially authorized by vote of the 
people of the county. 

* Law of Feb. 25, 1898. f See also Rev. Stat., c. 120. §2. 



154 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

16. Municipal Limitations — The Constitution (Art. 
IX., §9) requires that municipal corporations in levy- 
ing taxes (excepting in case of special assessments) 
shall make such taxes uniform in their application to 
persons and property. 

The statutes * forbid cities or villages to levy a tax 
at a rate exceeding two per cent, on the assessed valua- 
tion of taxable property. 

PUBLIC DEBTS 

17. Borrowing- Money — It sometimes happens 
that the State or municipal corporations are obliged 
to make improvements which are so expensive that 
should they be paid immediately from the proceeds of 
taxation an excessive burden would be laid on the tax- 
payers. Under these circumstances the money needed 
may be borrowed. 

18. Limitations on Borrowing- Power — But to 
protect the people against extravagance or corruption 
on the part of their representatives, the Constitution 
and statutes fix a limit to the borroAving power. 

The General Assembly may not incur indebtedness 
(except in case of insurrection or war) to exceed $250,- 
ooo, unless specially authorized by a vote of the peo- 
ple of the State (Art. IV., § 18). 

No county, city, township, school district, or other 
municipal corporation may incur indebtedness to ex- 
ceed five per cent, on the assessed valuation of taxa- 
ble property (Art. IX., § 12). 

*Rev. Stat,,c. 24, §111. 



CHAPTER XII 
PUBLIC EDUCATION 

FREE SCHOOLS 

1. The Constitution requires the Genera] As- 
sembly to "provide ;i thorough and efficient system 

of schools, whereby all children of this State may 
receive free a good common school education" (Art 
VIII, § 1). 

This was merely carrying out the intention of Con- 
gress at the very beginning of the plan of government 
for the old Northwest Territory. The Ordinance of 
1787 laid the foundation for free schools (p. 91), the 
enabling act of Congress granted land lor the encour- 
agement of education, and the Constitution and laws <>t' 
the State establish the system. 

2. A Generous and Complete Educational 
Scheme — The State of Illinois, it is seen, provides 
free education through the common schools, which 
are scattered throughout the State; through high 
schools, which are everywhere within reach ; and 
through the State university.* Thus almost any one 
who desires education, whether he lives in city or 
country, can get it free of cost, and to almost any 
extent. 

The reason for this generous provision is that in a 

* The university tuition is very low. 



156 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

republic every citizen should be intelligent in order to 
be a good citizen, and that every one ought to be 
able to make the most of himself. 

3. Compulsory Education — The law requires 
that all children between the ages of seven and four- 
teen shall attend a day school (public or private) at 
least sixteen weeks each year. At least twelve of 
these Aveeks' attendance shall be consecutive.* Proper 
exceptions are made for inability to attend by reason 
of physical or mental defects. 

4. The Laws — In some cities schools were estab- 
lished under special laws before the Constitution of 
1870 was adopted, and these laws are still in force. 
Aside from these places, the public schools are under 
a general law,f which marks out a plan for schools, 
creates authorities for their control, and provides the 
means of financial support. 

Inference has already been made to the State super- 
intendent of public instruction and to the county 
superintendents (pp. 186, 128). 

5. School Townships — For common school pur- 
poses the congressional townships (pp. 30, 31) are made 
school townships4 Fractional townships are attached 
to full ones near at hand. It will be remembered that 
these townships do not necessarily coincide with the 
towns in the counties under town (wrongly called 
u township ") government. Even if a town does coin- 
cide in area with a school township, the school officers 
are in no sense town officers. 

<>. Township Board of Trustees — The school af- 



* Rev. Stat., c. 122, § 313. f Rev. Stat., c. 122. 

\ Rev. Stat., c. 122, § 30. 



PUBLIC EDUCATION 107 

fairs of each township are under the control of a Hoard 
of Trustees.'" The board consists of three members, one 
of whom is elected by the people of the township each 
year, for a term of three years. Thus the board is a 

continuous body. The election is held on the second 
Saturday in April. In school townships whose bound- 
aries coincide with those of a town the school trus- 
tees are elected on the same day as the town officers 
(the first Tuesday in April). Any resident of the dis- 
trict who is twenty-one years old is eligible lor elec- 
tion. But no two trustees shall reside, when elected, in 
the same district, and no one can be trustee and di- 
rector at the same time. 

7. Powers and Duties of the Hoard 'Hie town 

ship Board of Trustees chooses one of its own members 

as president, and some other person, not a member, as 
treasurer. It may divide the township into school 
districts for the convenience of those who attend. i 
The board has charge of the school funds of the town- 
ship, and apportions them semi-annually among the 
districts according to the number of children under 
twenty-one years of age in each; :|; holds in its name all 
school property,§ has the charge of the same, and may 
sell it under certain conditions;! has charge of the 
township school lands ; may establish a township high 
school if the people of the township vote in favor of 
such proposition T (at a special election held for that 
purpose), and makes regular reports to the county 
superintendent. 



* Rev. Stat., c. 122, §§ 32-36. f Rev. Stat. c. 122, § 51. 

X Rev. Stat., e. 122, § 55. § Rev. Stat., e, 122, §£ 59-66. 

I Rev. Stat., c. 122, § 244. IT Rev. Stat,, c. 122, £67. 



158 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

8. District Boards of Directors — Each school dis- 
trict, provided it has a population of less than one 
thousand, and is not governed by a special act (p. 138), 
has a Board of Directors,* which is charged with the 
management of the district school. Each year, on the 
third Saturday in April, the people of the district elect 
one director for a term of three years. Thus the board 
consists of three directors, and is a continuous body. 
Any resident of the district who is twenty-one years 
old, can read and write the English language, and 
is not a township school trustee, is eligible for elec- 
tion. 

9. Powers and Duties of Board of Directors— 
The Board of Directors effects its own organization, 
appointing one of its own members as president and 
another as clerk. 

The board must establish and keep in operation for 
at least 110 days of actual teaching a free school or 
schools sufficient for the accommodation of all children 
in the district between the ages of six and twenty-one. 
To this end, it is the duty of the board to appoint 
teachers, to fix their salaries, and issue to them Avar- 
rants on the township treasurer each month ; to pre- 
scribe what branches of study shall be taught, and 
what text-books and apparatus shall be used ; to pro- 
vide sufficient funds for the needs of the schools, in 
addition to the funds apportioned by the township 
Board of Trustees, by levying a district tax, and to 
make regular reports. Financial reports are made to 
the public at the annual election and filed with the 
treasurer ; educational reports are made to the county 

* Rev. Stat., c. 122, §§ 121-125. 



PUBLIC EDUCATION 159 

superintendent. The board may buy land fora school- 
house site and erect a suitable building thereon if the 
people of the district so vote at an election held for 
that purpose. The board has charge of all school- 
houses in the district, must keep them in good order, 
and may allow them to be used for other than school 
purposes. It is the duty of the board to enforce good 
conduct among both teachers and pupils, and accord- 
ingly power is granted to dismiss teachers and to expel 
pupils.- 

lO. Boards of Education — Cities and villages, ex- 
cepting such as are under special laws (pp. L37-8), are 
subject to the general provisions of the school law as 
above detailed. However, there are some additional 
provisions for their benefit. 

In districts with a population over 1,000 and less than 
l(M),iioo a Board of Education f takes the place of the 
district Board of Directors. The Board of Education 
consists of a president, six members, and an additional 
member for each ten thousand inhabitants in excess of 
1,000. However, the total number in the board must 
not exceed fifteen. ( )ne-third of the members are elected 
each year, on the third Saturday of April, for a term 
of three years. Thus the Board of Education, like the 
township Board of Trustees and the district Board of 
Directors, is a continuous body. 

The powers and duties of the Board of Education are 
the same as those of a district Board of Directors, with 
some additions. 

The board is to establish and support free schools for 
not less than six or more than ten months. In making 

. * Rev. Stat., c. 122, % 135-156. f Rev. Stat., c. 122. £ 157. 



160 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

the tax levy, it is not lawful to provide for maintain- 
ing schools for more than ten months unless on the 
petition of a majority of the voters of the district. 
The board may employ a superintendent of schools, 
may examine teachers, and must publish an annual re- 
port showing the state of the schools and their cost. 

1 1. The City Schools of Chicago— The State school 
law provides that in cities with a population of 100,000 
or more (Chicago is the only such city) the schools shall 
be under the control of a Board of Education* appointed 
by the mayor, with the approval of the city council. 
There are twenty-one members, seven being appointed 
annually for a term of three years. Thus the board is 
a continuous body. The term of office begins on July 
1st. The board elects its own president and secretary. 

12. Powers and Duties of the Board — The Board 
of Education is entrusted with the management of 
school property and with the organization and control 
of the public schools. The city treasurer is the treas- 
urer of the board. 

To erect school buildings, to buy land as their sites, 
to borrow money for school purposes on the credit of 
the city, the board requires the consent of the city 
council.f 

The remaining powers of the board are independent 
of control by other parts of the city government. The 
board may furnish and care for the buildings, hire 
buildings or rooms if those owned by the city are in- 
adequate, employ teachers and fix their salaries, decide 
on text-books and courses of study, fix the boundaries 
of school districts, maintain discipline among both 

•Rev. Stat., c. 122, §178. f Rev. Stat., c. 122, § 177. 



PUBLIC EDUCATION 161 

teachers and scholars, and manage the school property 
and fluids from which income is received.* 

It is the duly of the board to use their powers for 
the maintenance of schools, and so as to secure the 
highest efficiency of instruction. f 

13. Professional and Higher Education— The 
State normal schools and the State university have 
already been mentioned. They are an essential part 
of the system of public instruction. 

SCHOOL FUNDS 

14. The money expended annually on the public 
schools conies from two sources — the State and the 
locality. 

15. State Tax — The State levies an annual tax 
for the benefit of common schools.^ The proceeds 
of this tax are divided among the counties in propor- 
tion to the number of children under twenty-one years 
of age. This tax is the largest part of the school fund, 
amounting of late to the sum of a million dollars a 
year.§ 

16. State School Fund Proper — A part of the pro- 
ceeds of the sale of lands belonging to the United States 
which were within the State of Illinois, and which 
were sold after January 1, 1819, was given by the 
United States to the State. | Three per cent, of the 
net proceeds of such sales were to be used by the 
State for the encouragement of learning. Of this 

* Rev. Stat,, c. 122, § 178. f Rev. Stat., c. 122, § 179. 

X Rev. Stat., c. 122, § 232. § Laws of 1897, p. 287. 

1 Act of Congress, April IS, 1818, Section 6. 
11 



162 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

fund one-sixth was to be reserved for a college or uni- 
versity. The part reserved for common schools is 
held by the State, and interest at the rate of six per 
cent, is paid into the school fund, and is divided 
among the counties in the same way as the State tax. 

17. United States Deposit Fund — In 1835 the 
United States was out of debt, and there was a sur- 
plus in the treasury which came from the sale of lands. 
This surplus was divided among the States — not as a 
gift outright, but by way of a deposit. As a matter 
of fact, however, the deposit has never been called in, 
and probably never will be. The share of Illinois Avas 
81:77,919.24. A part of this sum was set aside for 
education, and on this amount thus set aside the 
State pays into the school fund annual interest at the 
rate of six per cent. This also is divided among the 
counties. 

18. Method of Distribution — Thus it is seen that 
the entire sum derived from the tax and from the 
above mentioned interest moneys is divided among the 
counties of the State in proportion to the number of 
children under twenty-one years of age. The money 
is not actually gathered into the treasury and then sent 
out to the various counties. To save the necessity of 
this awkward process, the State auditor sends to each 
county superintendent a warrant on the county col- 
lector for the amount due to that county. The col- 
lector cashes the warrants, and turns them in to the 
State treasurer in lieu of so much money* 

10. Fines — It is also provided that all fines, penal- 
ties, and forfeitures imposed by the courts of law, 

* Rev. Stat., c. 122, §§ 234-5. 



PUBLIC EDUCATION 163 

excepting such as are imposed in incorporated towns 
or cities for violation of the local ordinances, shall also 
be paid over to the county superintendent, as an ad- 
dition to the common school fund.* 

20. Apportionment — The county superintendent 
apportions the school money received from all sources 
among the respective townships, and pays over the 
proper shares to the township treasurers. + 

21. Local Taxes — Local taxes for school purposes, 
as specified by law, may be levied by district Boards 
of Directors, or by the proper authorities of cities or 
villages.;): The total amount thus levied must n<>t 
exceed two per cent, of the assessed valuation for 
educational purposes, and three per cent, for building 
purposes. The proceeds of these taxes are paid by the 
collectors to the township treasurers. In cities these 
funds are paid over to the city treasurer, who acts as 
treasurer of the Board of Education.^ 

22. Township Lands — Each township was entitled 
by act of Congress to one section (16) of land, which 
was reserved for school purposes (p. 33). This land 
has partly been sold, the remainder being rented. 
The interest on the amount received for sales, and 
the rentals for the rest, are paid into the treasury, 
and there held subject to the order of the school 
board. 

23. Incidentals — There, are various incidental 
sources of income — gifts by individuals for specific 
purposes, tuition paid by non-resident pupils, and 
some others. 



* Rev. Stat., c. 122, § 269. .\ Rev. Stat., c. 122, § 26. 

X Rev. Stat., c. 122, § 202. § Rev. Stat,, c. 122, § 182. 



1H4 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

24. Chicago School Receipts, 1897-8 — The re- 
ceipts of the Chicago School Board from these various 
sources for the school year ending- June 30, 1898, were 
as follows: From the State, $266,846.-21; from city 
tax, $6,640,692.49; from interest and rentals, $482,- 
383.18; from incidental sources, $8,290.08. This was 
a total of $7,398,211.96.* 

25. Borrowing' Money — For building purposes, 
the boards of school directors may, when authorized 
by a special vote of the people, borrow money and 
issue bonds therefor. + The sum borrowed in any 
one year must not exceed live per cent, (including ex- 
isting indebtedness) of the assessed valuation of prop- 
erty in the district. In cities with a population over 
1 no, ooo, such bonds can be issued only with the con- 
sent of the city council. \ 

TEACHERS 

2G. Qualifications — The State law requires cer- 
tain definite qualifications for teachers. § The State 
superintendent and county superintendents are au- 
thorized to grant certificates to those who are shown 
to possess such qualifications. The State certificate is 
of two grades — the first being valid for life, and the sec- 
ond for five years. County certificates are also of two 
grades — for two years and one year, respectively. 
Each is granted on the basis of a public examination. 
The qualifications for these certificates are, good 
moral character, a minimum age (eighteen for males, 

•Chicago School Report, p. 156. \ Rev. Stat., c. 122, § 215. 
X Rev. Stat., c. 122, § 177. § Rev. Stat., c. 122, §§ 185-8. 



PUBLIC EDUCATION If,;, 

seventeen for females), and certain educational acquire- 
ments. For State certificates the State superintendent, 
together with the "principals of the state universi- 
ties," fixes the educational standards and controls the 

examinations. The county superintendent conducts 
the examinations for county certificates. The educa- 
tional requirement for a certificate of the second grade 
is that the person to whom it is issued " is qualified to 
teach orthography, reading in English, penmanship. 
arithmetic, English grammar, modern geography, and 
the history of the United States." For a first-grade 
county certificate the examination covers tin 1 fore- 
going branches of knowledge, ami in addition the ele- 
ments of the natural sciences, physiology, and the laws 
of health. 

Boards of education in cities are permitted to ex- 
amine candidates for teachers' positions and to issue 
certificates accordingly — the board prescribing the 
qualifications." 

* Rev. Stat., c, 122, §§ 100, 179. 



CHAPTER XIII 

CONSTITUTIONAL RESTRICTIONS ON THE 
POWERS OF GOVERNMENT 

1. Limitations of Government — One important 
purpose of a constitution is to construct a frame of 
government, and to give to each part its own powers 
and duties. But it is quite as necessary to specify also 
the limitations within which the government must re- 
strain its action. History plainly teaches that men 
put in positions of political responsibility are very apt 
to be guided by selfish and grasping motives. Then, 
too, unless those who are entrusted with different 
branches of government know the limits of their own 
powers, even with the best intentions they are likely to 
encroach on the powers which belong to others. 

For these reasons, in drawing American constitu- 
tions great pains are taken to enumerate things which 
must not be done. These are the restrictions, or prohi- 
bitions, on the powers of government. 

RESTRICTIONS IN THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION 
ON THE POWERS OF STATES 

2. Federal Republic — The United States is a fed- 
eral republic. Therefore every particle of its soil 
which falls within any of the States is governed by 



CONSTITUTIONA L RESTRICTIONS \ffl 

two constitutions and by two sets of laws — Federal 
and State. 

In dividing powers between the Federal govern- 
ment and the States, it lias been so arranged that there 
are some things which may be done by the former but 
not by the latter, some which may be done by the lat- 
ter but not by the former, some which may he done 
by both, and some which may be done by neither. 

Thus the Federal government has the power to 
make treaties and to coin money, both of which pow- 
ers are forbidden to the States. The Federal Consti- 
tution is silent as to education ; therefore ( longress may 
not, and the States may, organize schools within the 
several States. This depends on the principle that the 
Federal government has only such powers as are 
granted, while the States may do whatever is not tor- 
bidden in the Federal Constitution. 

The Federal government may lay a tax on land. 
The States a re not forbidden to do the same thing, and 
there is nothing in the nature of a land tax which 
would prevent its being laid by both authorities. 
Hence this power may be exercised by both. 

Both the United States (i.e., the Federal govern- 
ment) and the States are forbidden to grant a title of 
nobility. 

3. The Prohibitions on the States in the Federal 
Constitution are found mainly in Article 1., Section LO; 
Article IV., Sections 1 and 2 ; Article VI., Section 2 ; 
Amendment XIII., Amendment XIV., and Amend- 
ment XV. There are also some implied prohibitions 
in other parts of the Constitution. 

These prohibitions on States, it must be noticed, cover 
the whole field of political action. They relate to the 



168 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

State constitutions as well as to statutes enacted by the 
State legislatures. They include the acts of the Ex- 
ecutive and the acts of the courts. 

4. Federal Law Supreme — The Federal Constitu- 
tion, laws, and treaties are the supreme law of the 
land, "anything in the constitution or laws of any 
State to the contrary notwithstanding." * 

This is a prohibition on the enactment of any State 
la w, whether in the State constitution or statutes, which 
conflicts with Federal law. If a State does make such 
enactment, and under it a suit reaches a Federal court, 
that court will decide the enactment in question to be 
null and void. 

5. Some " Essential Attributes of Sovereignty " 
Forbidden — The States are forbidden to do certain 
tilings which are held to belong to what are known as 
"the essential attributes of sovereignty" — i.e., they 
are things which are customarily done only by the 
governments of independent nations.f 

These are (1) the making of treaties, (2) engaging in 
war, (3) granting authority to private armed ships to 
carry on war, (4) keeping of military or naval forces 
in time of peace, (5) coining money, (6) issuing paper 
notes to pass as money, (7) making anything but gold 
and silver coin a legal tender for the payment of debts, 
(8) passing laws which shall take the place of a judi- 
cial trial and conviction for crime, or which shall put 
persons accused of crime in a worse position legally 
than was the case when the crime was committed, (9) 
granting titles of nobility, (10) laying duties on im- 
ports and exports, (11) laying duties of tonnage. 

* U. S. Const., Art. VI., § 2. fU. S. Const., Art. I., § 10. 



CONSTITUTIONAL RESTRICTIONS 169 

Some of these are forbidden mainly because they are 
thought undesirable altogether, and are forbidden to 

the Federal government as well. Such wvv those num- 
bered (8), (9), and the latter pari of < 1",. 

Others are forbidden unless ( 'ongress grants consent. 
These are (2), (4), (10), (11). Tinier certain specified 
conditions States may levy duties and carry on war. 

6. Interstate Comity — States are forbidden to do 
somethings which relate to what is called "interstate 
comity." " No State may refuse to give full credit " to 
the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings " of 
any other State. KTo State may refuse to the citizens 
of any other State the same privileges ami immunities 
possessed by its own citizens e.g., if a citizen of Ohio 
is temporarily resident in Illinois, he is entitled to ex- 
actly the same legal rights, under the same limitations, 
as a citizen of Illinois. States are forbidden to harbor 
criminals who have tied from other States. States 
were also forbidden to harbor runaway slaves from 
other States, but since the adoption of the thirteenth 
amendment this prohibition is obsolete 1 . 

7. Slavery Prohibited — Xo State may establish Of 
maintain by law the condition of slavery .f 

Slavery is the legal condition by which the services 
of one human being belong permanently as property 
to another. Slaves were at one time held in all the 
original thirteen States. In the States north of Mary- 
land slavery was abolished voluntarily at different 
times — the last being New York, in 1827. Fifteen 
States maintained slavery until it was abolished by the 
Civil War and the adoption of the thirteenth amendment 

*U. S. Const., Art. IV., §§ 1, 2. f V- S. Const., Anult. XIII. 



170 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

(1805). These were the States south of Pennsylvania, 
the Ohio River, and Iowa. In the old Northwest 
Territory slavery was forbidden by the Ordinance of 
1787. Repeated efforts were made, however, to induce 
Congress to consent to the existence of slavery in Illi- 
nois while a Territory, but without success. After 
Illinois became a State, a determined effort was made 
to secure an amendment to the Constitution legalizing 
slavery, but by a large majority the people defeated 
the plan (1824). 

8. Civil Rights— States are forbidden to enact or to 
enforce any law which abridges the privileges or im- 
munities of citizens of the United States.* 

The Constitution does not specify these privileges 
and immunities. Whatever they are they are exempt 
from interference by the States, whether in their con- 
stitutions and laws or in any acts of the administra- 
tive departments or courts. 

Some think that these privileges are those included in 
the first eight amendments to the Federal Constitution. 
That, however, is not the view of the Supreme Court 
of the United States, and therefore, unless that court 
should take a different view of the case, it cannot be 
held to be the law. 

9. Due Process of Law — The States are forbidden 
to deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, with- 
out due process of law. This does not mean any par- 
ticular process, but merely such law as is general and 
impartial in its character, and such as at the same time 
violates no provision of the Federal or State Constitu- 
tion. Law and not caprice should be the method. 

*U. S. Const., Amdt. XIV. 



CONSTITUTIONAL RESTRICTIONS 171 

Law is a body of general rules ; caprice relates to an 
individual ease only. 

The States are forbidden to deny to any person 
within their jurisdiction the equal protection of the 
laws. 

The States are forbidden to pay any debts incurred 
in aid of insurrection against the United States, or any 
claims for the emancipation of slaves. 

10. Suffrage — States are forbidden to deny citizens 
of the United States the right to vote "on account of 
race, color, or previous condition of servitude."* 

Citizens may he denied the right to vote on any other 
ground which may please the States. Indeed qualifi- 
cations of age, sex, intelligence, or property are em- 
bodied in the suffrage laws of many States. The pro- 
hibition merely relates to the particular reasons 
enumerated. 

RESTRICTIONS MADE BY THE ILLINOIS CONSTI- 
TUTION ON THE POWERS OF THE STATE 
GOVERNMENT 

11. Bills of Rights — The Constitution of Illinois 
provides for a frame of government, distributes pow- 
ers among its branches, and assigns duties to them. 
Here it might stop, leaving the State government to 
exercise these powers, which in that case would be all 
which are not forbidden by the Federal Constitution. 

But the earliest Constitutions adopted by any of the 
States, during the Revolutionary War, were not content 
with this, and specified certain things which the gov- 

*U. S. Const., Amdt. XV. 



172 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

eminent was forbidden to do. These things were 
mainly snch acts as the British Constitution forbade 
to the king, and formed a body of rights of the peo- 
ple which the king could not infringe. Some other 
things were such as the British Parliaments had done 
at various times, but which in the opinion of the 
American colonists were things which ought not to be 
done. These various prohibitions formed what was 
known as a bill of rights — so called from a famous act 
of the British Parliament in 1689, which enumerated 
and declared rights of British subjects as against the 
king. It will be seen that the American bills of 
rights included the rights of the people as against the 
action of all branches of their government. 

THE ILLINOIS BILL OF RIGHTS 

12. As new States were admitted to the Union they 
all followed the example of the early States in making 
a bill of rights a part of the constitution. Illinois was 
no exception, and each of its three Constitutions has 
had one article devoted to this subject. The present 
bill of rights of Illinois is not very different from that 
embodied in the Constitution of 1818, and consists of es- 
sentially the same limitations on the State government 
as the first eight amendments to the Federal Consti- 
tution place on the Federal government (111. Const., 
Art. II.). 

RESTRICTIONS OX TnE POWERS OF THE STATE LEGIS- 
LATURE AND OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS 

1 :*. But with the continued experience of the people 
with State governments it has become evident that 



CONSTITUTIONAL RESTRICTIONS 173 

the State legislatures cannot safely be entrusted with 
too extensive powers, (specially with such as relate to 
the raising and expending of revenue, and with such 
as include grants of special privileges to individuals or 

groups of individuals. Accordingly the present Con- 
stitution of Illinois contains a Long lisl of Limitations 
on the powers of the General Assembly. Many or all 
of these might, perhaps, quite as well have been em- 
bodied in the hill of rights, hut it has seemed more 
convenient to put them in the pail of the Constitution 
which relates to the Legislature (Art. EV.), orin that 
which relates to revenue (Art. EX.). 

The same considerations have Led to like limitations 
on the powers of Local governments thoseof coun- 
ties, cities, villages, and towns (Act. EX.). 

The first paragraph and the last two paragraphs of 
the Illinois hill of rights are merely declaratory of 
general principles (111. Const., Art. EL, §§ 1. E9, 20). 
They, perhaps, need no comment. 

14. Freedom of Religion — In some countries there 
is an "established" church — i.e., a church which is 
recognized by law as a public institution and sup- 
ported in whole or in part by taxes Levied on all. At 
times laws have required people to attend services 
at the State church, or have forbidden them to attend 
any other. Even in some of the original American 
colonies, and to some extent in some of the States at 
the time of the Revolutionary War, political privileges 
were made dependent on certain forms of religious 
profession.* The power to pass such laws is forbidden 
to Congress by the first amendment to the Federal 

* Fiske, " Critical Period," pp. 70-87. 



174 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

Constitution, and to the State Legislature by Section 
3 of the Illinois bill of rights. 

15. The Abuse of Liberty — Advantage has been 
taken of this guaranty of religious liberty to defend 
practices which are at variance with the general ideas 
of morality and social order. An example of this is 
found in the Mormons, who at one time had a home in 
Illinois (1840-46), and who insisted that polygamy 
was Avith them an article of religious faith. The con- 
stitutional limitations cannot cover such practices. 

16. Freedom of Speech — It is the law in some 
continental nations of Europe that rulers are not to 
be spoken of disrespectfully, and that newspapers must 
not print things which are forbidden by the govern- 
ment. In this country, on the contrary, it is thought 
that public servants should be open to free criticism, 
and the newspapers should be allowed to publish facts 
and comment without stint. This right is secured 
against infringement by the Illinois Legislature in the 
fourth article of the bill of rights, as it is against act 
of Congress in the first amendment to the Federal 
Constitution. 

17. Abuse of Liberty of Speeeh — Libel — It is not 
right, however, that people should be free to indulge 
in wanton and vicious defamation of character, espe- 
cially in the public press. This is the "abuse" of lib- 
erty to which reference is made in the Illinois Constitu- 
tion — " being responsible for the abuse of that liberty " 
— and which is implied, though not mentioned, in the 
Federal amendment. This abuse of freedom of speech 
is known in law as " libel," and is subject to a penalty.* 

* Rev. Stat., c. 38, §§ 177, 178 ; c. 126, §§ 1-5. 



COKS 77 77 • Tlo& 1 1 R i:s in k 'Tioys 1 7 :, 

It was an old maxim of the English law thai w * tJi«- 
greater the truth the greater the libel," because if a 
charge of bad conduct or character is true so much the 
more damage is done by its publication. This princi- 
ple is not tolerated in Illinois, unless it can be shown 
that the publication is needless and malicious (ill. 
Const., Art. II., § 4).* 

IS. Freedom of* Assembly and Petition — The law 
of some lands does not allow people to meet in consid- 
erable numbers, no matter with however praiseworthy 
a motive, unless the police authorities consent. The 
Legislature is pi'ohi hi ted from making such gatherings 
illegal in Illinois, and the police may not interfere 
with them so long- as public order is observed (111. 
Const., An. [I., § 17). But if an assemblage is riotous 
it may be dispersed, and those who persist in the dis- 
order may he arrested and punished. 4- The same 
liberty is guaranteed against interference by Federal 
officials, and with the same limitation, in the first 
amendment to the Federal Constitution. 

19. Due Process of Lav — The government of the 
State is forbidden to deprive any person of life, liberty, 
or property " without due process of law " | 111. Const.. 
Art. II., § 2). This prohibition on the power of the 
States is found also in the fourteenth amendment to 
the Federal Constitution, so that the provision in the 
State bill of rights is hardly necessary. £ 

The nature of the laws under which a person may 
be deprived of life, liberty, or property by the govern- 
ment is quite clearly marked out in further provisions 
of the bill of rights. 



* Rev. Stat,, e. 38. § 179. \ Rev. Stat., c. 3S, §§ 252-255. 

X U. S. Const., Amdt. XIV., § 1. 



[76 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

20. Protection of Persons Accused of Crime 

Governments, which are the agencies of the people 
for the general welfare, are necessarily entrusted with 
Large powers. Especially is this true in the matter of 
detecting and punishing criminals (111. Const., Art. II., 
§§ 5-11, 14). But history shows plainly that persons 
who are given these powers cannot always be trusted 
to use them with entire honesty and impartiality. 
Under pretext of punishing crime it is quite possible 
for innocent persons to be put in prison, or otherwise 
made to suffer, merely in gratification of the private 
animosity of public officers, or for the purpose of se- 
curing political ends. There are some countries even 
to-day in which persons arc liable to be arrested and 
kept imprisoned a long time without knowing why 
and without any trial. In times past trials have been 
conducted in private and without giving the accused 
any chance to defend himself properly. Penalties, 
too, have at times been very cruel, and out of all pro- 
portion to the offence. 

To guard against these evils there has grown up in 
England a series of safeguards for persons accused of 
crime, which are embodied in the constitutions of all 
our States, and in that of the United States. They 
are some of the most essential provisions of a bill 
of rig] its. 

21. Warrant for Arrest — In the first place the 
general rule is that no person shall be put under arrest 
without a warrant (Art. II., § 6). 

A warrant is an order issued by a judge to a police 
officer, directing the arrest of a specified person. No 
warrant may be given unless there is good reason, sup- 
ported by the sworn statement (affidavit) of some one 



CONSTITUTIONAL RESTRICTIONS 177 

who is credible, for believing the person in question to 
be guilty of a crime. 

22. Arrest without Warrant While this is the 
rale, it is also a well understood rale of law that a 
person detected in the act of attempting or commit- 
ting crime may he arrested without a warrant by any 
one. whether a peace officer or not, in whose presence 
the act was committed; and further that an officer 
may arrest without warrant any person whom such 
officer has good reason to believe guilty of a crime 
which has in fact been committed.* 

ii«*5. Examination —Being arrested, whether with or 
without a warrant, the prisoner must be taken at once 
before a magistrate (a judge or justice of the peace), 
for examination, f The magistrate examines witn< 

both for and againsl the accused, and thus decides 

whether the probability of guill is strong enough to 
make it worth while to hold the prisoner For further 
proceedings. If the decision is in the negative, the 
prisoner is discharged. Otherwise he may he released 

on bail, or committed to jail for trial (if the offence is 
a petty one) or for tin 1 action of the grand jury. 

24. Bail — Bail is a sum of money guaranteed by 
responsible persons to he paid in case the accused per- 
son does not a ppear when wanted for Further legal pro- 
ceedings.:): The persons who agree to give hail for 
the accused are called his sureties. Some offences are 
by law not bailable — especially offences the penalty of 
which is death, and with regard to which the evi- 
dence is very clear. In other cases the Constitution 

* Rev. Stat, c. 38, § 342. f Rev, Stat., c. 38, §^ 355, 360. 
% Rev. Stat., c. 38, § 303. 
12 



178 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

requires bail to be accepted whenever, in the opinion 
of the court, the sureties are sufficient (Art. II., § 7). 

25. Commitment — If the accused is committed to 
jail, the sheriff or constable is given by the court an 
order called a mittimus* directing that the prisoner 
be delivered at the county jail, and that the jailer 
shall receive him and hold him in custody until dis- 
charged by process of law. 

26. Indictment — The legal methods of most Euro- 
pean nations permit the examining magistrate to 
commit an accused person to be held for trial by the 
criminal court. In Great Britain and the United 
States, however, a further safeguard is provided. No 
one is permitted to be held for trial on charge of 
a felony (p. 134) unless he has first been indicted by 
a grand jury (111. Const., Art. II., § 8). 

27. The Grand Jury — The grand jury consists of 
twenty-three persons, of whom sixteen constitute a 
quorum. 

Grand jurors must be inhabitants, between the ages 
of twenty-one and sixty, not decrepit or feeble-minded, 
of good character and judgment, intelligent, and they 
must understand the English language. They must 
also be freeholders (owners of real estate) and house- 
holders living with their families.f 

28. Exemption — Certain classes of people are ex- 
empted from all jury duty 4 These are, the principal 
officers of all departments of the State government, 
all officers of the United States, practicing attorneys, 
officiating ministers of the gospel, school teachers dur- 



* Rev. Stat,, c. 38, §§ 363, 367. 
f Rev. Stat., c. 78, §§ 2, 16, 26-30. \ Rev. Stat., c. 78, § 4. 



CONSTITUTIONAL RESTRICTIONS 179 

ing the terms of school, practicing physicians, constant 
ferrymen, mayors of cities, policemen, and members of 
the fire department. 

29. How a Jury is Obtained — It is the duty of the 
county board to prepare a suitable list of persons eli- 
gible for jury duty. In case of a special vote of the 
people in any county, however, to thai effect, this duty 
is given to a jury commission. This body consists of 
three suitable persons, appointed by the judges within 
the county for a term of three years. < >ne is appointed 
annually. From the list thus prepared, the clerk of 
the court requiring a grand jury draws a sufficient 
number of names for the purpose. 

30. How the Grand Jury Moots — The grand jury 
meets in a private room of the court-house, and con- 
siders such cases as it thinks proper. Usually the 
cases are prepared and laid before the grand jury by 
the State's attorney. < >f course all who have been held 
for the grand jury by examining magistrates are in- 
cluded. Besides these the grand jury may consider 
any other cases as to which they have any evidence. 
They hear only evidence against the accused, and de- 
cide, not whether in their opinion he is guilty or inno- 
cent, but whether the evidence against him is strong 
enough to warrant a trial. It is the trial which deter- 
mines whether he actually is guilty. The paper which 
is drawn up, formally charging the acctised person with 
a crime, is called an indictment. Twelve members of 
the jury must vote for an indictment to make it valid. 

The Federal Constitution also requires indictment by 
a grand jury as a condition of trial in a criminal case 
in the Federal courts.* 

*U. S. Const., Anult. V. 



180 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

Certain offences are not indictable. These are, in 
Illinois, minor offences, cases of impeachment, and mil- 
itary offences, tinder the Federal Constitution non- 
indictable cases are the last two named. 

It is also provided by the Illinois Constitution that 
the grand jury may be abolished by law in all cases. 

31. Habeas Corpus — One of the most famous and 
valuable safeguards of an accused person against injus- 
tice is the writ of habeas corpus (111. Const., Art. II., 
§ 7). A prisoner who thinks himself to be illegally held 
may apply to any judge for this writ, and the State 
Constitution ordains that the privilege of this writ 
shall not be suspended, unless in cases of rebellion or 
invasion the public safety may so require.* 

The writ is merely an order from the judge, ad- 
dressed to the officer who has the prisoner in custody, 
commanding that he produce that prisoner before the 
judge at a given time and show the reason for impris- 
onment. It is the duty of the officer to obey this writ. 
The judge, at the hearing, may decide that the prisoner 
is illegally held, and so may discharge him from cus- 
tody altogether; he may decide that bail should be 
received, and so may discharge him on furnishing ade- 
quate sureties ; or he may remand the prisoner to jail. 

32. Trial — The method of criminal trials is hedged 
about by many restrictions in the interests of the ac- 
cused (111. Const., Art. II., § 9). 

The accused has the right to be tried in his own 
presence and to be represented by counsel;! to hear the 
nature of the accusation stated to him; to have the 
witnesses against him testify in his presence, and to 

* Rev. Stat., c. 05. fRev. Stat,, c. 78. 



CONSTITUTIONAL RESTRICTIONS 1 M 

have the court compel, it* need be, the attendance <>f 
witnesses for the defence.* The writ issued by the 
court which requires the attendance of witnesses is 
called siibjxi/Hi. 

The trial must be speedy, and it must be decided by 
an impartial jury of the county or district where the 
offence is alleged to have been committed. 

The trial jury consists of twelve men. Their require- 
ments are the same as those of the grand jury, except- 
ing that they need not he freeholders or householders. 
The jury list is made up and the jurors are drawn, 
also, in the same way as in case of the grand jury. In 
order to find the accused guilty, the t welve jurors must 
vote unanimously for conviction. If the twelve vote 
unanimously for acquittal, the prisoner goes IVee, and 
he cannot be tried a second time for the same offence 
(Art. [I.,§ 10). If the jury cannot agree, they so report, 
and the prisoner may be tried again by another jury. 

The accused cannot he compelled to give evidence 
against himself (Art. II., ^ 10). In old times this was 
not the law, and accused persons were tortured in order 
to make them confess. 

:$:$. Penalties — Penalties must not be out of pro- 
portion to the offence. No penalty shall make the 
heirs of a convicted criminal incapable of inheriting 
his estate, and no person shall he punished by banish- 
ment from the State for an offence committed within 
it (Art. It., §.11). 

34. No Ex Post Facto Law — The Legislature is for- 
bidden to pass any ex post facto la,w (111. Const., Art. II., 
§ 14). Such a law is one which, passed after a given 

* Rev. Stat,, c. 38, §421, etc. 



182 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

offence has been committed, makes the penalty heavier, 
or in any way increases the disadvantage of the crim- 
inal. Such law is evidently unjust. It is also forbid- 
den to the States by the Federal Constitution. 

Tt must be noticed that an ex post facto law is one 
referring to criminal matters only. Other retroactive 
legislation is not forbidden. 

35. The Court — A criminal court includes a judge, 
who presides ; a jury, which decides the case ; the 
State's attorney, who conducts the case against the 
prisoner ; the prisoner's attorney, who defends him ; 
a clerk, who keeps judicial records ; and certain at- 
tendants. 

3G. English and American Practices — The writ 
of habeas corpus, the grand jury, and the trial jury are 
all derived from England, where they originated long 
since. 

All these pains are taken for the protection of per- 
sons accused of crime because it is thought better that 
many guilty men should escape than that one innocent 
man should be punished. Moreover, the accused per- 
son is presumed to be innocent until he is proven 
guilty. Therefore, when one is arrested it is not nec- 
essary for him to prove his innocence. It is, on the 
other hand, necessary for the State to prove his guilt, 
or he goes free. 

37. Protection of Property against the Govern- 
ment — The " due process of law " by which the gov- 
ernment may deprive persons of property is quite 
clearly defined and limited in the State Constitution. 

The two ways in which this power is most com- 
monly exercised are in levying taxes and in the use of 
the right of eminent domain. 



CONSTITUTIONAL RESTRICTIONS 1^3 

hh. Taxes — Taxes are money, or property, taken 
from the individual by the government for public use 
(p. L50). 

No administrative officials are permitted to levy or 

collect taxes unless specifically authorized by law. 

The power of the G-eneral Assembly to lay taxes is 
limited by the Federal Constitution."' States are tor- 
hidden to tax imports or exports without the consent 
of Congress. Even if Congress consents, the state 

can use no pari of the proceeds of such tax except 

enough to pay the mere cost of inspecting article- of 
import or export. Inspection is for the purpose of 
insuring health or the genuineness of articles. States 
are also forbidden, without the consent of Congress, to 
lav any duty of tonnage Max on ships). 

The power of the General Assembly t<> lay taxes is 
limited by the State Constitution. Taxes are to he 
levied on property according to its value, and on cer- 
tain occupations and legal privileges (HI. Const, Art 
IX., §1). 

iM). Exempt ions — Certain classes of property may 
be exempted from taxation (111. Const., Art. IX. . § 2). 
These include all public property, -and such other 
property as may be used exclusively for agricultural 
and horticultural societies, for school, religious, ceme- 
tery, and charitable purposes." But such exemption 
may be made only by genera] law (111. (/oust.. Art. 
IV., § 32). The law in question is very specific and 
liberal. + 

40. Limitations on Comities — The power of count v 
authorities to lay taxes is limited to the rate of sev- 

* U. S. Const., Art. I., Sec. 10, § 2. \ Rev. Stat., c. 120, § 8. 



184 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

en ty- live cents on the one hundred dollars of assessed 
valuation, unless the people of the county by a direct 
vote authorize an increase (Art. IX., § 8). 

41. Municipal Corporations — The State Legisla- 
ture is forbidden to lay taxes for the purposes of mu- 
nicipal corporations, but is permitted to grant the tax- 
ing power for local purposes to the corporate authori- 
ties of such corporations (111. Const., Art. IX., §§ 9, 10). 
In granting this power, the law forbids a city or vil- 
lage to lay a tax, aside from what may be necessary 
for the payment of debts or the interest thereon, 
which shall exceed two per cent, on the assessed valua- 
tion of all property within the corporate limit.* 

42. Public Indebtedness — It is sometimes neces- 
sary to expend for public purposes large sums of 
money which if raised at once by taxation would be 
an unreasonable burden, and which at the same time 
are for the benefit of coming generations. Under 
such circumstances it is thought only fair to allow 
such money to be obtained by borrowing, the interest 
and principal of the loan to be paid gradually from 
the taxes of a series of years (p. 154). 

On the other hand, it is not safe to allow govern- 
ments unlimited power to incur indebtedness, as they 
would be liable to such extravagance as would in the 
end result in a crushing load of taxation. 

43. State I>ebts — Accordingly, the General Assem- 
bly is forbidden to incur debt at all, except for the 
purpose of meeting a casual deficit in revenue, and 
then only to the amount of two hundred and fifty 
thousand dollars. No debt for any other purpose 

*Rev. Stat., c. 24, § 111. 



CONSTITUTIONAL UESTKK 'TIOXS 1 gg 

(except in case of insurrection or invasion \ may be in- 
curred unless the people of the State authorize such 
debt by vote at a general election (111. Const., Art. 
IV., § 18. See also p. 154). 

44. Local Debts — Local authorities (county, city, 
town, or village) are forbidden to incur debt to an 
amount exceeding five per cent, on the assessed valua- 
tion of the taxable property (111. Const., Art. I X.. ; 1 2 ). 
Further, no such debt shall be incurred unless pro- 
vision is at the same time made for meeting the inter- 
est and principal as the same shall fall due (p. 154). 

45. Eminent Domain — By eminent domain is 
meant the right of the State to take any particular 
piece of property which belongs to an individual if it 
is needed for public purposes. It may be for the pub- 
lic interest that a city hall or a school-house should be 
put in a certain place, or that a railroad or canal 
should go through a given piece of land. In such 
cases, if the owner is unwilling to sell, the State has the 
right to take the land without the owner's consent. 

In order to prevent the abuse of that power the bill 
of rights provides that the right of eminent domain 
shall not be exercised without giving just compensa- 
tion to the owner. In case the State and owner do 
not agree as to the value of what is taken, a jury shall 
decide (111. Const., Art. II., §13). 

4G. The Expenditure of Public Funds — It is not 
enough for the Constitution to put limits on the power 
of government to lay taxes and to incur debt. If the 
funds which actually come into the treasury in these 
ways are taken out again carelessly or dishonestly, it 
will be necessary to raise so much the more. And so 
in the end the taxpayer will lose. 



186 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

For this reason there are careful restrictions con- 
nected with the expenditure of public funds. 

No money must be taken from the treasury ex- 
cept under an appropriation made by law (111. Const., 
Art. IT., § 17). Laws may be made only in a certain 
way, so as to insure deliberation and publicity (Art. 
IV., §§ 12, 13). No extra compensation may be voted 
to public officers after their service has been rendered 
(Art. IV., §§ 19, 21). Salaries of members of the Legis- 
lature shall not be changed during the term for which 
they were elected (Art, V., § 23). The same principle 
is applied to administrative officers. No law may ex- 
tend the term of a public officer after his election or 
appointment (Art. IV., § 28). The Legislature has no 
power to remit debts due to the State or its subdi- 
visions (Art. IY., § 23). The expenditure to be allowed 
for the State capitol is limited (Art. IY., § 33). 

47. Justice and Equality and the General Wel- 
fare — Various restrictions are also laid on the State 
law-making power in the interest of justice and equal- 
ity of rights among the people — in the interest of the 
general welfare — in the interest, also, of economy of 
time for public servants, by preventing their attention 
from being taken up with a mass of needless details. 

48. Special Legislation — To accomplish these ends 
a variety of restrictions are laid down. Special legis- 
lation is prohibited on a long list of subjects (Art. 
[Y., j< 22). If it is desired to have a law on any one of 
these subjects, the law must be a general one for the 
whole State. For instance, the Legislature is not per- 
mitted to pass a law for the organization of schools in 
St. Clair County alone. The law under which those 
schools are organized is the general school law of the 



CONSTITUTJOXAL RESTRICTIONS 187 

State. Of course any special laws for such purposes 
as had been passed before the adoption of the Constitu- 
tion of L870 were not thereby repealed. But no more 
sucli laws have been made since that year. 

49. Special Laws for Municipal Charters - In 
sonic States there is no such limitation on the power 
of the Legislature, and accordingly each city has a 
charter- a law which provides the structure and 
powers of the city government— of its own. The re- 
sult is not merely that city charters in such States 
are very different from one another, but also that tinw- 
are continually being changed. In every city then are 
political factions or special interests which besiege 
the Legislature for modifications of the charter. Such 
modifications are incessantly made, without much re- 
gard for the real interests of the city. The require- 
ment of the Illinois Constitution is that there shall be 
one law for the whole State, providing a plan <»f gov- 
ernment for all cities alike, and that no special act 
shall be passed for any one city. This cuts off the 
continual meddling by the Legislature with the gov- 
ernment of different cities, for what a particular group 
of men may want and perphaps might easily get for 
their own home is by no means so simple a thing if it 
cannot be done without affecting every city in the 
State (p. 157). 

50. Classification of Cities — Attention should be 
called to oneway in which the restriction of the Illi- 
nois Constitution seems to be to some extent evaded. 
Laws are passed which relate to cities which have 
a population of more than 100,000. The only city 
in the State which answers this description is Chi- 
cago, and it is evident that the provisions in ques- 



188 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

tion are intended to apply to Chicago alone. Still, 
the law is put in general terms, and it is held to be 
valid to classify cities in this way, provided that in 
any such class, no matter how many or how few it 
may contain, the provisions of the law are general. * 

51. Special Laws for Other Charters — The same 
thing is true of other corporations. If every hank 
or railroad that wished a charter empowering it to do 
business had to request a special act of the Legis- 
lature, there Avould be room for much injustice and 
corruption. This is prevented by the simple require- 
ment of a general law. 

CORPORATIONS 

52. A Corporation is a body of people associated 
together and authorized by law to do business as a 
single person. There is always a corporate name, like 
the " Mutual National Bank," or the " Illinois Central 
Railroad." A corporation can make contracts, buy 
and sell property, sue and be sued in the courts, just as 
if it were one person. The members of a corporation 
select certain individuals to act as their agents for 
doing such business. 

53. Public or Municipal Corporations include all 
the people in a given area, and form a part of the gov- 
ernment of the State. Cities, villages, and school 
districts are examples of municipal corporations. 

54. Private Corporations do not necessarily include 
all the people in a given area, and have purposes quite 
distinct from those of the government of the State. 

* Rev. Stat., c. 122, § 173. 



( OXSTITUTIONA I, RESTRICTIONS \ 89 

Some are business corporations, formed for the sake of 
profit, like banks, railroads, and manufactories. Some 
are for educational or benevolent purposes, like colleges 
or orphan asylums. Some are for religious purposes, 
like churches ; and others, again, for social object- or 
amusement, like various clubs. 

The laws relating to public corporations are dis- 
cussed under the head of Local Government (p. L37). 
Some of the provisions as to private corporations, how- 
ever, may be considered at this point. 

Tin 4 genera] law for private corporations divides 
them into two classes those for pecuniary profit, and 
those not for pecuniary profit. 

55. Corporations for Pecuniary Profit,* with the 
exception of hanks, railroads, and insurance companies, 
and one or two other kinds, may he formed by filing 
in the office of the secretary of Btate 'p. B6) a state- 
ment setting forth essential facts — like the name and 
purposes of the association, the amount of its capital 
stock, and its place of doing business — and then receiv- 
ing a license authorizing organization. When organi- 
zation is duly effected, the facts relating to it are also 
tiled in the office of the secretary of state, and that 
officer then grants a certificate of incorporation. 

56. A Corporation not for Pecuniary Profit + is 
formed by filing in the office of the secretary of state 
a statement setting forth the name and purposes of the 
association, and the names of the trustees who are to 
manage its affairs at the outset, and then receiving 
from the secretary of state a certificate of incorpora- 
tion. 

*Rcv. Stat., c. 32, §§ 1-4. fKev. Stat., c. 32. §§ 29, 30. 



190 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

In (Mich case the powers of the corporation and its 
mode of doing business are carefully defined in the 
statute. 

57. Churches — Religious corporations (churches) 
are formed still more simply, as no certificate is re- 
quired from the secretary of state.* 

58. Banks — Banks may be incorporated in accord- 
ance with a general law ratified by the people in 1887. 
Permission to incorporate in this case comes from the 
auditor (p. 86) instead of the secretary of state. f 

59. Railroads — Railroad corporations are formed 
by filing a statement of essential facts in the office of 
the recorder of deeds (p. 129) of each county through 
which it is proposed that the road shall run, and in the 
office of the secretary of state.:}; 

00. Insurance Companies — Insurance companies 
are incorporated by filing with the auditor a statement 
of essential facts, and receiving from him due author- 

ity.§ 

The powers of banking and railroad corporations are 
carefully limited by the Constitution (Art. XI.), and 
still more specifically by the statutes above cited. The 
statutes, also, are very explicit in guarding the powers 
and methods of other corporations which are con- 
ducted for pecuniary profit. 

ANY LEGISLATION ON SOME SUBJECTS FORBIDDEN 

61. Some things the Legislature is absolutely pro- 
hibited from doing. 

02. Indebtedness to the State — No law may be 

* Rev. Stat,, c. 32, § 35 f Rev. Stat., c. 16a. 

\ Rev. Stat., c. 114." § Rev. Stat., c. 73. 



CONSTITUTIONAL RESTRICTIONS 191 

passed which releases persons from indebtedness to the 
State or to any subdivision of the State (Art. IV.. ; 23). 

(>:*. Lotteries — No Jaw may be passed authorizing 
lotteries or gift enterprises (Art. IV., § -27). Lotteries 
are a species of gambling. Some generations ago they 
were thought entirely proper, and were conducted in 
aid of churches and colleges, and lor other eminently 
respectable purposes. On the whole, however, they 
were found to he injurious, and so are now forbidden 
in all the States.* 

(>4. Extending Terms of Office — No law shall ex- 
tend the term of a public officer after his election or 
appointment (Art. IV., § 28). 

65. Appropriations for Education — No money or 
other property given for educational purposes shall be 
devoted to any other purpose (Art. VIII., § l ; l 

GO. Impairing the Obligation of Contracts No 
law may be passed which impairs the obligation of 
contracts — e.g., a law which permits a city to repu- 
diate the payment of its debts (Art. II.. § L4). This 
class of laws is forbidden by the Constitution of the 
United States,*)" so the clause in the State Constitution 
is redundant. 

67. Irrevocable Grants of Privilege — No law shall 
be passed which makes an irrevocable grant of special 
privileges (111. Const., Art. II., § 14). 

08. Public Incorporations not Contracts — By the 
law for the incorporation of cities such corporations 
are vested with certain powers and privileges. The 
repeal or modification of such laws, whereby privileges 
are taken away, is held to be entirely valid. 

* Rev. Stat., c. 38, §§ 180-185. f U. S. Const., Art. I., Sec. 10, § 1. 



192 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

The incorporation of cities is not a contract, in the 
sense of the Constitution, and hence such repeals do 
not constitute the impairment of the obligation of a 
contract. 

69. Private Incorporations are Contracts, but may 
not be Irrevocable — If a charter is granted to a rail- 
way, or other private corporation, for a term of years, 
such grant is a contract. So long, then, as the corpo- 
ration in question does not violate the conditions of 
the grant, the Legislature may not revoke it. But, on 
the other hand, the granting of such a charter in per- 
petuity is forbidden. 

70. Elections — All elections must be free and equal 
(111. Const., Art. II., § 18), and all votes must be by 
ballot (111. Const., Art. VII., § 2). 

The election of public officers is at the very founda- 
tion of government in a republic. Unless the laws 
and their administration are such that people may 
freely express their will at the ballot box, the republic 
is practically subverted. 

71. Subordination of Military to Civil Authority 
— The military is to be kept in strict subjection to the 
civil authorities, and soldiers shall not be quartered in 
private houses without the consent of the owners. 

A military force is necessary for defence against 
attacks from without, and as a last resource in case of 
internal disorder (111. Const., Art. II., §§ 15, 16). But 
no republic can be free if military force is predomi- 
nant.* 

It was a custom at the time the American republic 
was founded for soldiers to be kept, Avhen barracks 

* IT. S. Const., Aindl, III. 



CONSTITUTIONAL RESTRICTIONS \\)? y 

were not at hand, by assigning them to private houses. 
This was inconvenient, annoying, and expensive for 
the householders. It is forbidden to Federal authori- 
ties by the Federal Constitution, and to State authori- 
ties by the State, Constitution. 

THE REMEDY IN case government disregards 

CONSTITUTIONAL RESTRICTIONS 

It is a maxim of Law that for every wrong there 
should be a remedy. If the government disregards the 
limitations placed upon it by the ( institution, the rem- 
edy of the citizen is found in the courts. Any act of 
the Legislature which falls within the prohibitions of 
the Constitution the courts will declare to he uncon- 
stitutional, and so void and of no effect. Any act of 
an administrative officer in accordance with such a 
Law, or in any way in excess of his Legal powers, a 
court- will prevent by a prohibitory writ — a writ of in- 
junction. 

The courts will not pass on the question of the 
constitutionality of a law, however, unless a casi is 
brought — i.e., unless sonic one claims that he is ac- 
tually wronged by the application of a statute, and 
asks for redress. 
13 



CHAPTEK XIV 
ILLINOIS AND THE UNITED STATES 

ILLINOIS IN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT 

1. Representation — Illinois, as a State of the Union, 
is represented in the Federal government ; and, for the 
same reason, the Federal government is represented in 
Illinois. 

As a State of the Union, Illinois is entitled to two 
senators, to such a number of representatives in Con- 
gress as the population of the State may warrant, and 
to a number of Presidential electors equal to the num- 
ber of senators and representatives taken together. 

2. Senators — The two senators are elected by the 
State Legislature, as the Federal Constitution and laws 
require. Each has a term of six years — the present 
term of one expiring March 4, 1901, and that of the 
other March 4, 1903. In the winter preceding those 
two dates the Legislature will make a new election. 

:5. Election — The method of election is fixed by 
Federal statute. 

The State Legislature chosen at the election next 
preceding the date at which the term of a senator from 
that State expires is the Legislature which may choose 
a new senator.* 

On the second Tuesday after the Legislature meets 
and is organized, each house, by a viva voce vote, nom- 

* U. S. Rev. Stat., §§ 14-19. 



ILLINOIS AND THE UNITED STATES 195 

inates one person as senator. On the next day. at 
noon, the two houses convene in joint session and for- 
mally report the action of each on the previous day. If 
then it appears that the same person was nominated by 
both houses, he is declared elected. Otherwise the 
houses, in joint session, proceed to vote vi/va voce, a 
majority of all the members elected to both houses 
being required for an election. If there is no election 
the first clay of the joint session, then at noon on the 
following day the joint session reconvenes, and goes 
on voting. This process is continued until there is an 
election. 

4. Vacancy — In case of vacancy in the office of 
senator, if such vacancy happens during a recess of 
the Legislature, the governor of the State may appoint 

a temporary senator, who holds office until the next 
meeting of the Legislature; in that case, or in case of 
a vacancy which happens while the Legislature is in 
session, the Legislature 4 proceeds to elect a senator in 
the same manner as above described. 

5. Representatives— By the congressional appor- 
tionment at present in force, Illinois has twenty-two 
members of the Federal House of Representatives.* 
After the national census of 1900, Congress will pass 
a new law, fixing* the total number of members in the 
House of Representatives and allotting the propor- 
tional numbers to the various States. 

6. Apportionment — An apportionment act is made 
in this way : 

It is first decided of what number the house shall 
consist. Too large a house is unwieldy, too small a 

* Act of Feb. 7, 1891. 



196 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

house does not afford adequate representation to the 
increasing population. The present number is 356 
(357 with Utah, see p. 197). 

The number of representatives being determined, 
the total population of the United States, as ascer- 
tained by the last census, is divided by this number, 
and the quotient is the representative ratio — i.e., theo- 
retically each State should have as many representa- 
tives as its population contains the ratio. Dividing 
the population of each State by the ratio, the quotient 
indicates the number of congressmen to which the 
State is entitled ; but in each case there is a remainder. 
"Were there no remainders, the sum of the quotients 
would exactly equal the total number of representa- 
tives in the house. In fact, however, the sum of the 
quotients always falls short of the total number of 
representatives. The difference is made up by adding 
one congressman successively to the number allotted 
to each State which has a large remainder (under the 
law of 1891, to each State with a remainder greater 
than half the ratio). It must be noted also that each 
State must have at least one representative, no matter 
how small its population. 

The last apportionment act of Congress, passed in 
1891, proceeded on this principle. The total popula- 
tion of the States and Territories, by the census of 
1890, was 62,022,250. From this total was subtracted 
the population of the Territories, which are not en- 
titled to representatives. The remainder, 61,908,906, 
was the population of the States. The number 356 
was fixed as the number of representatives. This par- 
ticular number was selected because 4 tests with various 
numbers showed that 356 would result in not decreas- 



ILLINOIS AM) THE UNITED STATES 197 

ing the number of representatives to which any State 
had been entitled under the previous apportionment, 
and at the same time would assign one representative 
to each remainder that equalled or exceeded one-half 
of the representative ratio. 

Dividing 61,908,906 by 356, the quotient, L73,901 
(disregarding the remainder), is the representative ra- 
tio. Dividing the population of each State by this 
ratio, the sum of the quotients is 339. The remaining 
seventeen representatives were then assigned to the 
States with large remainders. 

AVhen Utah was admitted as a State (in 1896) it was 
given one representative, which made the total Dum- 
ber ;5a7. 

The population of Illinois in L890 was 3,826,351. 
Dividing this by L73,901, the quotient is 22, with a 
remainder of only 529. So Illinois has twenty-two 
representatives. 

7. Election — There are two ways in which the rep- 
resentatives of a State might be chosen — either all on 
a single ticket by the State as a whole, or separately 
in districts. Until 1842 Congress left the States free 
to do as they pleased in the matter, and tin 1 result was 
that some States followed one plan and others the 
other. Since 1842, however, the successive apportion- 
ment acts of Congress have required that in all the 
States representatives shall be chosen by the district 
plan, one representative from each district. It is also 
required that the districts shall be composed of con- 
tiguous territory, and that they shall be as nearly as 
possible equal in population. The formation of dis- 
tricts is left to the State Legislatures.* 
* Act of 1891, § 3. 



198 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

8. The Gerrymander — In forming congressional 
districts it is possible for a legislature controlled by 
one political party to make arrangements very much 
to the advantage of that party. The method is to put 
together counties or parts of counties in such way that 
the favored party may carry many districts by small 
majorities, while the other party may carry a few dis- 
tricts by large majorities. This process is called " ger- 
rymandering " (p. 57). The act of Congress attempts 
to lessen the ease of gerrymandering districts by the 
requirement above noted — that they shall be composed 
of contiguous territory and shall he as nearly as pos- 
sible equal in population. 

The twenty-two Illinois districts with their respect- 
ive population are given in the Appendix (p. 252). 

f). Time of Election — The Federal law requires that 
members of Congress shall be elected on the Tuesday 
next following the first Monday in November of the 
even numbered years. * A few States whose Constitu- 
tions fix another date are permitted to be exceptions — 
Maine holding the election on the second Monday in 
September, Vermont on the first Tuesday in Septem- 
ber, and Oregon on the first Monday in June.f 

10. Ballots — The Federal law also requires that the 
elections shall be conducted by using written or printed 
ballots.:): The present election law of Illinois goes 
much further than this, and provides for the method 
of voting which is known as the "Australian ballot" 
(p. 50). 

11. Presidential Electors — The President of the 



* U. S. ReV. Stat., Sec 25. f Act of March 3. 1875, Sec. 6. 

% U. S. Rev. Stat., Sec. 27. 



ILLINOIS AND THE UNITED STATES \[\\\ 

United States is chosen by electors representing the 

several States. 

12. Mode of Election The electors in each State 

are appointed "in such manner as the Legislature 

thereof may direct/' " :: Accordingly State Legislatures 
have used this power very freely. In some States the 
Legislatures themselves chose the electors — as was the 
case in South Carolina until alter the Civil War. In 
other States electors have been chosen separately in 
districts, like the representatives in Congress. This 
was done in Michigan in 1892. Ihit all the States now 
choose the electors by popular election on a general 
ticket. By this method the party which carries a 
State, no matter by how small a majority or plurality. 
secures all the electors to which that State is entitled. 
The method of choosing electors is entirely at the dis- 
cretion of the State Legislatures. Congress having no 
voice in the matter. 

13. Time of Election — The time of election also is 
now the same in all the States — the Tuesday next fol- 
lowing the first Monday in November of the year just 
preceding the beginning of the presidential term. This 
is fixed by act of Oongress.t 

14. Number of Electors — The number of electors 
to which any State is entitled is equal to the whole 
number of senators and representatives which that 
State has in Congress.;): Illinois, therefore, under the 
present apportionment, has twenty-four electors. New 
York has thirty-six electors, Pennsylvania has thirty- 
two, every other State has less than Illinois. 

* U. S. Const., Art, II., Sec. 2. 

f U. S. Const., Art. II., Sec. 1, § 4 ; U. S. Rev. Stat., Sec. 131. 

JTJ. S. Const., Art. II., Sec. 2. 



200 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

15. Proceeding's of Electors — The proceedings of 
the electors after they are chosen are regulated by act 
of Congress, under the Constitution of the United 
States. * 

By the statute the governor of each State is required 
to furnish to each person chosen as an elector in that 
State three copies of the certificate of election, and to 
send to the secretary of state of the United States a 
certificate containing the names of all the persons 
chosen as electors in that State, as Avell as a statement 
of the number of votes cast for every person for whom 
any votes were cast at all for that office. 

By the Constitution f the electors are required to 
meet in their respective States and to vote by ballot 
for President and Yice-President of the United States, 
designating the candidates for the two offices on dif- 
ferent ballots. It is also required that lists shall be 
made of the votes cast for each candidate for either 
office, and that these lists, duly signed and certified 
by the electors, shall be transmitted, sealed, to the 
president of the United States Senate. 

The statute makes still more detailed provision for 
these transactions. The electors are to meet on the 
second Monday in January succeeding their appoint- 
ment.^: They are to make three copies of the results of 
their balloting. To each copy is attached a copy of 
the governor's certificate of the choice of the electors. § 
One copy is sent to the president of the United States 
Senate by mail, another is sent to him by a special 
messenger, and the third is deposited with the United 



* Act of Feb. 3, 1887. \ U. S. Const., Amdt. XII. 

X Act of 1887, § 1. § U. S. Rev. Stat., § 140. 



ILLINOIS AND THE UNITED STATES 201 

States district judge in the district in which the meet- 
ing of electors is held. The law also provides for 
settling disputes which may arise as to the choice of 
electors.* 



THE UNITED STATES IN ILLINOIS 
THE FEDERAL JUDICIARY 

10. The United States courts consist of the Supreme 
Court, which sits at Washington; the nine circuit 
courts of appeal, the nine circuit courts, and the sev- 
enty-three district courts. 

The Constitution provides that there shall he "one 
Supreme Court and such inferior courts as Con£ 
may from time to time ordain and establish." f -^ s tn i s - 
however, does not specify the details of structure of 

the Supreme Court, and definitely leaves the planning 
of other courts entirely to Congress, it follows that the 
Federal Legislature, in fact, has the 4 power to create 
the whole structure of the Federal courts. This lias 
been done in the various judiciary acts. 

17. Supreme Court — The Supreme ( Jourt consists of 
nine members — one chief justice and eight associate 
justices.:): The chief justice at present is Melville W. 
Fuller, of Illinois. 

18. Districts and District Courts — The entire 
Union is divided into a convenient number of districts. 
Some districts consist of a single State. Very popu- 
lous States, or States of very large area, are divided 

* Act of 1887. f U. S. Const., Art. III., § 1. 

JU. S. Rev. Stat, § G73. 



202 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

into two or more districts.* This is the case with 
Illinois, which comprises two Federal judicial dis- 
tricts — the northern and the southern, f In each 
district there is a United States district court, consist- 
ing (usually) of one judged He holds court in a 
specified place. In the northern district of Illinois 
this place is Chicago; in the southern district it is 
Springfield. 

19. Circuit Courts — The entire Union, again, is 
divided into nine circuits, each circuit consisting of 
several States, and therefore, of course, including a 
number of districts.§ Illinois is in the seventh judi- 
cial circuit, which includes the States of Indiana, Il- 
linois, and Wisconsin. 

20. Circuit Courts and Circuit Courts of Ap- 
peals — In each circuit there are held two Federal 
courts — the circuit court and the circuit court of ap- 
peals. Each consists of a member of the Supreme 
Court and two circuit judges. In some circuits there 
is an additional judge. In the absence of any of these, 
district judges within the circuit are called in.|| Mr. 
Chief Justice Fuller is assigned to the seventh circuit. 

21. Circuit Courts — A circuit court is held by any 
one of the above-named judges, or by any two sitting 
together. It is the practice of the circuit courts,^ as 
the name implies, to hold sessions successively in each 
district throughout the circuit. 

22. Jurisdiction — Circuit and district courts have 
original jurisdiction — certain classes of cases being 

* U. S. Rev. Stat., § 530, sqq. and Amendments, 
t § 53G. % § 55 1 . § U. S. Rev. Stat., § G04. 

| U. S. Rev. Stat., §§ 605-7. Act of March 3, 1891. 
1 U. S. Rev. Stat., § G08. 



ILLINOIS AND THE UNITED STATES 203 

heard first in a district court, others being heard first 
in a circuit court. * 
2:5. Circuit Court of Appeals — In each circuit there 

is a circuit court of appeals. This consists always of 
three judges sitting together, two of whom form a 
quorum. If the Supreme Court justice or either of 
the circuit judges is not present, then district judges 
are called in.f A term of the circuit court of appeals 
is held annually in each circuit at a designated place. 
This place in the seventh circuit is Chicago. The 
court may also, from time to time, decide on a session 
at some other place within the circuit. 

24. Jurisdiction — The jurisdiction of the circuit 
court of appeals is limited to appeals from the district 
and circuit courts within the circuit.^ From the deci- 
sion of either a, district or circuit court appeals may he 
taken, according to the nature of the case, either t<> 
the circuit court of appeals or directly to the Supreme 
Court of the United States. Certain of these appeals 
to the circuit court may not be further appealed to the 
Supreme Court. Any question, however, which in- 
volves the constitutionality of a law, and some others. 
may, under any circumstances, go to the Supreme 

Court. 

25. Salaries — The salaries of Federal judges are not 
large.§ As the appointment is virtually for life, how- 
ever, the position is a very desirable one. The district 
judges receive $3,500-$5,000 ; circuit judges, $6,000; 
associate justices of the Supreme Court, $10,000; the 



* U. S. Rev. Stat,, §§ 563-571 ; §§ 629-637. 

f Act of 1891, §§ 1-3. \ Act of 1891 , §§ 4-15. 

§U. S. Rev. Stat., §§ 554, 607, 676, 714. 



204 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

chief justice, $10,500. At the age of seventy, any 
judge who has been on the Federal bench for ten years 
may retire on full salary. 

THE POST-OFFICES 

26. The postmaster - general of the United States 
has charge of the department which carries the mails. 
Besides his assistants and clerks at Washington, there 
is in every city and village, and in many country dis- 
tricts, a post-office, in charge of a postmaster and a 
greater or less number of assistants. In places of con- 
siderable population there are carriers whose duties 
are to gather the mail from boxes which are put in 
various places for the convenience of the people, and 
to deliver mail at homes and places of business. The 
railway mail service includes a number of employees 
whose duties are to distribute mail on the cars, so that 
there may be no delay in delivery at its destination. 

Post-offices are of four classes, determined by the 
amount of business which they do, and hence by the 
amount of the postmaster's salary.* Offices in which 
the salary is $3,000 or over are of the first class ; those 
in which the salary is $2,000 to $3,000 are of the sec- 
ond class ; those in which the salary is $1,000 to $2,000 
are of the third class ; those in which the salary is less 
than $1,000 are of the fourth class. 

Postmasters of the first three classes are appointed 
for a term of four years by the President, by and with 
the advice and consent of the Senate. Such offices are, 
therefore, called presidential offices. Postmasters of 

* Act of July 12, 1876. 



ILLINOIS AND THE UNITED STATES 205 

the fourth class are appointed by the postmaster- 
general.* 

There are in Illinois 250 presidential post-offices. 
Ten are of the first class -Bloomington, Chicago, De- 
catur, Elgin, Galesburg, Joliet, Peoria, Quincy, Rock- 
ford, and Springfield. There are 4:5 of the second 
class, and 203 of the third class. 

27. Postal stations — In large cities there are postal 
stations in different parts of the city. Each is man- 
aged by a superintendent, under the direction o\' the 
city postmaster. These stations are really smaller 
post-offices, each with its service of carriers, its sale 
of stamps, and its money-order and registered-letter 
business. 

CUSTOMS AND REVENUE 

28. A Port of Entry is a port situated on ocean, 
lake, or river, to which goods may be brought from a 
foreign country. f Sometimes such goods are landed 
at a seaport and carried by railroad to some other port 
of entry where they are to be delivered. Before such 
goods can be taken by the consignee a tax must be 
paid to the United States. This tax is called a duty. 
In every port of entry there is an office where such 
duties are collected. The Federal officer in charge is 
the collector of customs. There are also various other 
officers and employees connected with a custom-house. 
All these are officers of the United States Treasury De- 
partment. In Illinois the only port of entry is Chi- 
cago, but Cairo, Rock Island, Peoria, and Galena are 
known as ports of delivery, and are permitted to re- 

* U. S. Rev. Stat,, § 3830. f U. S. Rev. Stat., § 2767. 



206 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

ceive imported goods which have been duly entered 
and appraised in a port of entry. 

It is illegal to bring foreign goods into the country 
except at some port of entry. 

29. Internal Revenue Collectors — A large part of 
the United States taxes are collected at the custom- 
houses. However, there are also other taxes collected 
within the country. These taxes are called the internal 
n venue* They are gathered from manufacturers of 
tobacco, spirituous liquors, and various other articles. 
In time of war the internal revenue taxes are greatly 
increased, being laid on a much greater number of 
things. These taxes are usually paid by buying stamps. 
The officer who has charge of the collection is called 
a collector of internal revenue. There is one for each 
of the 126 districts in the United States. Illinois has 
eight collection districts, and hence eight collectors. 

30. Assistant Treasurer — There is also at Chicago 
a branch of the United States treasury, in charge of 
an assistant treasurer. He receives funds from various 
sources for the treasury. 

UNITED STATES ARMY AND NAVY 

31. Scattered throughout the United States there 
are various forts and posts at which are stationed por- 
tion s o f the United States regular army. Some of these 
forts arc strongly fortified, with heavy cannon, so as to 
repel invasion. Such is the case at the entrance to the 
harbor of New York. Other posts are arranged merely 
for the convenience of keeping troops. This is the 
case al Fort Sheridan, near Chicago. 

* U. S. Rev. Stat, §3141, note. 



ILLINOIS AND THE UNITED STA TE8 207 

The Constitution gives to Congress exclusive juris- 
diction "over all places purchased by the consent oi 
the Legislature of the State in which the same shall be, 

for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, (lock- 
yards, and other needful buildings."* Such military 
reservations in Illinois are two — Fort Sheridan, on the 
shore of Lake Michigan, north of Chicago, and the 
arsenal at Rock Island. 

The "exclusive; jurisdiction " of Congress means that 
the only laws which are in force are 1 hose of the United 
States. In giving consent to such arrangements, how- 
ever, State Legislatures often make it a condition thai 
the processes of State courts may still be executed 
within the reservation. That has been done by Illinois 
with reference both to Fort Sheridan and to Rock 
island. Aside from this, these reservations are as much 
apart from State law as is the District of Columbia. 

32. Navy on the Lakes — The vessels of the United 
States navy are seldom seen on the great lakes. By a 
treaty made with Great Britain in L817, it was agreed 
that each of the two nations should keep on the upper 
lakes — i.e., Erie, Huron, Michigan, and Superior— not 
more than two small vessels in all. Occasionally one 
of these craft appears at Chicago. There is Little like- 
lihood that the United States will ever he involved in 
a naval Avar on the great lakes. 

ILLINOIS IN FEDERAL OFFICE 

33. Illinois has furnished the United States its full 
share of officers who have done distinguished service 
to the republic. 

*U. S. Const., Art. I., Sec. 8, 8 IT. 



208 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

Abraham Lincoln was President of the United States 
from March 4, 1861, until his death, April 15, 1865. 
He was elected for a second term. 

Ulysses S. Grant was general in command of the 
armies of the United States, having won this rank by 
his great military successes during the Civil War. He 
was President of the United States from 1869 to 1877. 

Elihu B. AVashburne did especially valuable service 
as Minister of the United States to France during the 
critical period of the wars of 1870-71. 

Melville W. Fuller is now chief justice of the Su- 
preme Court of the United States. 

The names of many others, living and dead, who 
have honored Illinois in the national service, might 
easily be added. 



APPENDIX 

I. CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS 



Adopted in Convention at Springfield, May 13, A. I). 1870 



Ratified by (lie People July 2, 1870; in force Augusl 8, 1870 



PREAMBLE 



AVc, the people of the State of Illinois — grateful to Almighty God for 
the civil, political, and religious Liberty which He hath so long permitted 
us to enjoy, and looking to Him for a blessing upon our endeavors to se- 
cure and transmit tin- same unimpaired to succeeding generations— in 

order to form a more perfect government, establish justice, insure 
domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defence, promote the gen- 
oral welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our 

posterity, do ordain and establish this constitution for the State of 
Illinois. 

ARTICLE I 

BOUNDARIES 

The boundaries and jurisdiction of the State shall be as follows, to- 
wil : Begiuning at the mouth of Wabash River ; thence up the same, and 
with the line of Indiana, to the northwest corner of said State : thence 
east, with the line of the same State, to the middle of Lake Michigan ; 
thence north along the middle of said lake, to north latitude forty-two 
degrees and thirty minutes ; thence west to the middle of the Mississippi 
River, and thence down along the middle of that river to its confiuenjija. 
with the Ohio River, and thence up the latter river along its north westerrr^ 
shore, to the place beginning: Provided, that this State shall exercise 
such jurisdiction upon the Ohio River, as she is now entitled to, or such 
as may hereafter be agreed upon by this State and the State of Kentucky. 

14 



210 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 



ARTICLE II 

BILL OF RIGHTS 

§ 1. All men arc by nature free and independent, and have certain 
inherent and inalienable rights — among these are life, liberty, and the 
pursuit of happiness. To secure these rights and the protection of 
property, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just 
powers from the consent of the governed. 

§ 2. No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without 
due process of law. 

§ 3. The free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and 
worship, without discrimination, shall forever be guaranteed ; and no 
person shall be denied any civil or political right, privilege, or capacity 
on account of his religious opinions ; but the liberty of conscience hereby 
secured shall not be construed to dispense with oaths or affirmations, ex- 
cuse acts of licentiousness, or justify practices inconsistent with the 
peace or safety of the State. No person shall be required to attend or 
support any ministry or place of worship against his consent, nor shall 
any preference be given by law to any religious denomination or mode of 
worship. 

§ 4. Every person may freely speak, write, and publish on all sub- 
jects, being responsible for the abuse of that liberty ; and in all trials for 
libel, both civil and criminal, the truth, when published with good 
motives and for justifiable ends, shall be a sufficient defence. 

§ 5. The right of trial by jury as heretofore enjoyed, shall remain 
inviolate ; but the trial of civil cases before justices of the peace, by a 
jury of less than twelve men, may be authorized by law. 

§ 0. The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, 
papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not 
be violated ; and no warrant shall issue without probable cause, sup- 
ported by affidavit, particularly describing the place to be searched, and 
I Ik; persons and things to be seized. 

§ 7. All persons shall be bailable by sufficient sureties, except for 
capita] offences, where the proof is evident or the presumption great; and 
the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unle; 
when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it 

§ 8. No person shall be held to answer for a criminal offence, unless 
on indictment of a grand jury, except in cases in which the punishment 
is by fine, or imprisonment otherwise than in the penitentiary, in cases of 
Jppeachmcnt, and in cases arising in the army and navy, or in the militia 
when in actual service; in time of war or public danger: Provided, that 
the grand jury may be abolished by law in all cases. 

8 '.). In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall have the right 
to appear and defend in person and by counsel ; to demand the nature 



■ 



CO NSTITUTION 2 1 1 

;hk1 cause of the accusation, and to have a copy thereof : to meet the wit- 
nesses face to face, and io have process to compel the at tendance of wit- 
nesses in his behalf, and a speedy public trial by an impartial jury of the 
county ordistricl in which the offence i~ alleged to have been committed. 

§ 10. Xo pet-son shall he compelled in any criminal case to give 
evidence against himself, or be twice put in jeopardy for the same 
offence. 

§ 11. All penalties shall be proportioned to the nature of the of- 
fence; and no convict ion shall work corruption or forfeiture of estate; 
nor shall any person be transported out of the State for any offence com- 
mitted within the same. 

8 12. No person shall be imprisoned for debt, unless upon refusal 
to deliver up his esfate for the benefit of his creditors, in such manner 
as shall be prescribed by law ; or in cases where there i- Strong presump- 
tion of fraud. 

§ 13. Private property shall not be taken or damaged for public 
use without just compensation. Such compensation, when not made by 
the State, shall be ascertained by a jury, as shall be prescribed by law. 
The fee of land taken for railroad tracks, without consent of the owners 
thereof, shall remain in sueh owners, subject to the use for which it is 
taken. 

§ 14. No ex post f<t<t<> law, or law impairing the obligation of con- 
tracts, or making any irrevocable grant of special privileges or immu- 
nities shall be passed. 

S b"). The military shall be in strict subordination to the civil power. 

§ 10. No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house 
without the consent of the owner ; nor in time of warezcepl in the man- 
ner prescribed by law. 

§ 17. The people have the right to assemble in a peaceable manner 
to consult for the common good, to make known their opinions to their 
representatives, and to apply for redress of grievances. 

§ 18. All elections shall be free and equal. 

§ 19. Every person ought to find a certain remedy in the laws for all 
injuries and wrongs which be may receive in his person, property, or 
reptitation ; he ought to obtain, by law, right and justice freely and with- 
out being obliged to purchase it, completely and without denial, promptly 
and without delay. 

§ 20. A frequent recurrence to the fundamental principles of civil 
government is absolutely necessary to preserve the blessings of liberty. 

ARTICLE III 

DISTRIBUTION OF POWERS 

The powers of the government of this State are divided into three 
distinct departments — the Legislative. Executive, and Judicial; and no 



212 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

person, or collection of persons, being one of these departments, shall 
exercise any power properly belonging to either of the others, except as 
hereinafter expressly directed or permitted. 



ARTICLE IV 

LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT 

§ 1. The legislative power shall be vested in a General Assembly, 
which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives, both to be 
elected by the people. 

ELECTION 

8 2. An election for members of the General Assembly shall be held 
on the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November, in the year of 
our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy, and every two years 
thereafter, in each county, at such places therein as may be provided by 
law. When vacancies occur in either house, the governor, or person 
exercising the powers of governor, shall issue writs of election to fill 
such vacancy. 

ELIGIBILITY AND OATH 

§ 3. No person shall be a senator who shall not have attained the 
age of twenty-five years, or a representative who shall not have attained 
the age of twenty-one years. No person shall be a senator or representa- 
tive who shall not be a citizen of the United States, and who shall not 
have been for five years a resident of this State, and for two years next 
preceding his election a resident within the territory forming the district 
from which he is elected. No judge or clerk of any court, secretary of 
slate, attorney-general, state's attorney, recorder, sheriff, or collector of 
public revenue, member -of either house of Congress, or person holding 
any lucrative office under the United States or this State, or any foreign 
government, shall have a seat in the General Assembly: Provided, that 
appointments in the militia, and the offices of notary public and justice 
of the peace, shall not he considered lucrative. Nor shall any person 
holding any office of honor or profit under any foreign government, or 
under the government of the United States (except postmasters whose 
annual compensation does not exceed the sum of three hundred dollars), 
hold any office of honor or profit under the authority of this State. 

8 4. No person who lias been, or hereafter shall be convicted of 
bribery, perjury, or oilier infamous crime, nor any person who has been 
or may he a collector or holder of public moneys, who shall not have 
accounted for and paid over, according to law, all such moneys due from 
him, shall be eligible to the General Assembly, or to any office of profit 
or trust in this State. 



CONSTITUTION 2 1 3 

§ 5. Members of the General Assembly, before they enter upon their 
official duties, shall take and subscribe the following oath or affirmation : 

■• l do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitution of the 
United States and the Constitution of the statu of Illinois, and will faithfully dis- 
charge the duties of senator (or representative) according to the besl of my ability ; 
and that I have not knowingly or intentionally, paid or contributed anything, or 
made any promise in the nature of a bribe, to directly or indirectly influence any 
vote at the election at which I was chosen to till the said office, and have not 
accepted, nor will r accept or receive, directly or Indirectly, any money or other 
valuable thing, from any corporation, company, or person, for any vote or influ- 
ence I may give or withhold on any bill, resolution, or appropriation, or for any 
other official act." 

This oath shall be administered by a Judge of the supreme or circuit 

court in the hall of the house to which the member is elected, and the 

secretary of state .shall record and file the oat li subscribed by each mem- 
ber. Any member who shall refuse to take the oath herein prescribed 
shall forfeit his office, and every member who shall be convicted of hav- 
ing sworn falsely to, or of violating his said oath, shall forfeit his office 
and be disqualified thereafter from holding any office of profit or trust 

in this State. 

APPORTIONMENT — SENATORIAL 

8 6. The General Assembly shall apportion the State every ten years, 
beginning with the year one thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, by 
dividing the population of the state, as ascertained i>\ t lie Federal census, 
by the number fifty-one, and the quotient shall be the rat i<> of representa- 
tion in the senate. The State shall he divided into lift y-one senatorial 
districts, each of which shall elect one senator, whose term of office shall 
be four years. The senators elected ill the year of our Lord one thou- 
sand eight hundred and seventy-two. in districts bearing odd numbers, 
shall vacate their offices at the end of two years, and those elected in dis- 
tricts bearing even numbers, at the end of four years: and vacancies 
occurring by the expiration of term shall he tilled by the election of sen- 
ators for the full term. Senatorial districts shall be formed of contigu- 
ous and compact territory, hounded by county lines, and contain as 
nearly as practicable an equal number of inhabitants; but no district 
shall contain less than four-fifths of the senatorial ratio. Counties con- 
taining not less than the ratio and three fourths, may he divided into 
separate districts, and shall be entitled To two senators, and to one addi- 
tional senator for each number of inhabitants equal to the ratio contained 
by such counties in excess of twice the number of said ratio. 

Note. -By the adoption of minority representation. §§ 7 and S of this, article 
cease to be a part of the Constitution. Under § 12 of the schedule, and the vote of 
adoption, the following sections, relating to minority representation, are substituted 
for said sections: 



214 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

MINORITY REPRESENTATION 

SS 7 and 8. The House of Representatives shall consist of three 
times the number of the members of the Senate, and the term of office 
shall he two years. Three representatives shall he elected in each sena- 
torial district at the general election in the year of our Lord one thousand 
eight hundred and seventy-two, and every two years thereafter. In all 
elections of representatives aforesaid, each qualified voter may cast as 
many votes for one candidate as there are representatives to he elected, 
or may distribute the same, or equal parts thereof, among the candidates, 
as he shall see fit ; and the candidates highest in votes shall he declared 
elected. 

TIME OF MEETING AND GENERAL RULES 

§ 9. The sessions of the General Assembly shall commence at twelve 
o'clock noon, on the Wednesday next after the first Monday in January, 
in the year next ensuing the election of members thereof, and at no other 
time, unless as provided by this Constitution. A majority of the mem- 
bers elected to each house shall constitute a quorum. Each house shall 
determine the rules of its proceedings, and he the judge of the election, 
returns, and qualifications of its members ; shall choose its own officers ; 
and the Senate shall choose a temporary president to preside when the 
lieutenant-governor shall not attend as president, or shall act as governor. 
The secretary of State shall call the House of Representatives to order 
at the opening of each new assembly, and preside over it until a tem- 
porary presiding officer thereof shall have been chosen and shall have 
taken his seat. No member shall he expelled by either house, except by 
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to that house, and no 
member shall be twice expelled for the same offence. Each house may 
punish by imprisonment any person, not a member, who shall be guilty 
(.(' disrespect to the house by disorderly or contemptuous behavior in its 
presence. But no such imprisonment shall extend beyond twenty-four 
hours at one time, unless the person shall persist in such disorderly or 
contemptuous behavior. 

S 1 0. The door of each house and of committees of the whole shall 
be kept open, except in such cases as, in the opinion of the house, 
require secrecy. Neither house shall, without the consent of the other, 
adjourn for more than two days, or to any other place than that in 
which the two houses shall be sitting. Each house shall keep a journal 
of its proceedings, which shall be published. In the Senate, at the 
request of two members, and in the house, at the request of five mem- 
bers, the yeas and nays shall be taken on any question, and entered 
upon the journal. Any two members of either house shall have liberty 
to dissent from and protest, in respectful language, against any act or 
resolution which they think injurious to the public or to any individual, 
and have the reasons of their dissent entered upon the journals. 



CONSTITUTION 215 

STYLE OF LAWS LWD PASSAGE 01 BILLS 

8 11. The style of the laws of ibis state shall be: •• lii it enacted 
by the Peoph of tht State of Illinois, represented in tht General As- 
sembly." 

| {2. Bills may original c in either house, but may be altered, 
amended, or rejected by the other; and (in the final passage of all bills, 
the vote shall be by yeas and nays, upon each bill separately, and -hall 
be entered upon the journal ; and no bill shall become a law without the 
concurrence of a majority of the member- elected to each house. 

8 13. Every bill shall be read at Large on three different days, in each 
house; and the bill and ail amendment s t hereto -hall be printed before 
the vote is taken on its tinal passage : and every bill, having passed both 
houses, shall be signed by the speakers thereof . No act hereafter passed 
shall embrace more than one subject, and that shall be expressed in the 
title. Bui it' any subject shall be embraced in an act which shall nol be 

expressed in the title, sneh act shall be void only a- to SO much thereof 

as shall not be so expressed ; and no law shall be revived or amended by 
reference to its title only, but the law revived, or the section amended, 
shall be Inserted at length in the new act. And no act of the General 
Assembly shall take effect until the fir-t day of July next after it- pass- 
age, vnhss, in case of emergency iwhich emergency shall be ex] 
in the preamble or body of the act) the General Assembly shall, by a 
vote ot u wo- thirds of all the members elected to each house, otherwise 
direct. 

PRIVILEGES AMi DISABILITIES 

8 14. Senators and representatives shall, in all cases, exoepi treason. 
felony, or breach of the peace, be privileged from arrest during the session 
of the General Assembly, and in going to and returning from the same : 

and for any speech or debate in either house, they shall not be questioned 
in any other place. 

B 1"). Xo person elected to the General Assembly shall receive any 
civil appointment within this State from the governor, the governor and 
senate, or from the General Assembly, during the term for which he 
shall have been elected : and all such appointments, and all votes given 
for any such members for any such office or appointment, shall be 
void; nor shall any member of the General Assembly be interested, 
either directly or indirectly, in any contract with the State, or any count y 
thereof, authorized by any law passed during the term for which he shall 
have been elected, or within one year after the expiration thereof. 

PUBLIC MONEYS AND APPROPRIATIONS 

8 16. The General Assembly shall make no appropriation of money 
out of the treasury in any private law. Bills making appropriations for 



216 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

the pay of members and officers of the General Assembly, and for the 
salaries of the officers of the government, shall contain no provision on 
any other subject. 

S 17. No money shall be drawn from the treasury except in pursu- 
ance of an appropriation made by law, and on the presentation of a 
warrant issued by the auditor thereon ; and no money shall be diverted 
from any appropriation made for any purpose, or taken from any fund 
whatever, either by joint or separate resolution. The aiiditor shall, within 
sixty days after the adjournment of each session of the General Assembly, 
prepare and publish a full statement of all money expended at such ses- 
sion, specifying the amount of each item, and to whom and for what paid. 

§ 18. Each Genei'al Assembly shall provide for all the appropriations 
necessary for the ordinary and contingent expenses of the government 
until the expiration of the first fiscal quarter after the adjournment of 
the next regular session, the aggregate amount of which shall not be 
increased without a vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each 
house, nor exceed the amount of revenue authorized by law to be raised 
in such time ; and all appropriations, general or special, requiring money 
to be paid out of the State treasury, from funds belonging to the State, 
shall end with such fiscal quarter. Provided, the State may, to meet 
casual deficits or failures in revenues, contract debts, never to exceed in 
the aggregate two hundred and fifty thousand dollars ; and moneys thus 
borrowed shall be applied to the purpose for which they were obtained, 
or to pay the debt thus created, and to no other purpose ; and no other 
debt, except for the purpose of repelling invasion, suppressing insurrec- 
tion, or defending the State in war (for payment of which the faith of 
the State shall be pledged), shall be contracted, unless the law autho- 
rizing the same shall, at a general election, have been submitted to the 
people and have received a majority of the votes cast for members of the 
General Assembly at such election. The General Assembly shall provide 
for the publication of said law for three months, at least, before the vote 
of the people shall be taken upon the same ; and provision shall be made, 
at I lie time, for the payment of the interest annually, as it shall accrue, 
by a tax levied for the purpose, or from other sources of revenue; which 
law, providing for the payment of such interest by such tax, shall be 
irrepealable until such debt be paid. And, provided further, that the 
law levying the tax shall be submitted to the people with the law autho- 
rizing the debt to be contracted. 

B 19. The General Assembly shall never grant or authorize extra 
compensation, fee, or allowance to any public officer, agent, servant, or 
contractor, after service has been rendered on a contract made, nor 
authorize the payment of any claim, or part thereof, hereafter created 
againsl the State under any agreement or contract made without express 
authority of law; and all such unauthorized agreements or contracts 
shall be null and void. Provided, the General Assembly may make 



CONSTITUTION 217 

appropriations for expenditures incurred in suppressing Insurrection or 
repelling invasion. 

B 20. The state shall never pay, assume, or become responsible for 
the debts or liabilities of , or in any manner give, loan, or extend its 
credit to, or in aid of, any public or other corporation, association, or 
individual. 

pay of MEMBERS 

8 21. The members of the General Assembly shall receive for their 

services the stun of five dollars per day, during the first session held 

under this constitution, and ten cents for each mile necessarily traveled 
in going to, and ret arning from, the seal of government, to be computed 
by the auditor of public accounts; and thereafter sucb compensation as 
shall be prescribed bj law, and no other allowance or emolument, directly 
or indirectly, for any purpose whatever, except th< Bum of fifty dollars 
per session to each member, whi< b shall be in full for postage, stationery, 
newspapers, and all other incidental expenses and perquisites; but no 
change shall be made in the compensation of the General Assembly dur- 
ing (he term for which they may have been elected. Tin- pay and 
mileage allowed to each member of the General Assembly shall be certi- 
fied by the speakers of their respective houses, and entered on the jour- 
nals, and published at the (dose of each Session. 

sim.i I \l, LEGISLATION PROHIBITED 

S :l:l. The General Assembly shall not pass local or special laws in 

any of the following enumerated cases, that Is to say, for — 
Granting divorces ; 

Changing the names of persons or places ; 

Laying out, opening, altering, and working road- or highways; 

Vacating roads, town plats, streets, alleys, and public grounds; 

Locating or changing county seat>; 

Regulating county and township a (lairs; 

Regulating the practice in courts of justice ; 

Regulating the jurisdiction and duties of justices of the peace, police 
magistrates, and constables ; 

Providing for changes of venue in civil and criminal cases : 

Incorporating cities, towns, or villages, or changing or amending the 
charter of any town, city, or village ; 

Providing for the election of members of the Board of Supervisors in 
townships, incorporated towns, or cities; 

Summoning and impaneling grand or petit juries; 

Providing for the management of common schools ; 

Regulating the rate of interest on money ; 

The opening and conducting of an election, or designating the place 
of voting ; 



218 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

The sale or mortgage of real estate belonging to minors or others 
under disability ; 

The protection of game or fish ; 

Chartering or licensing ferries of toll bridges ; 

Remitting fines, penalties, or forfeitures ; 

Creating, .increasing, or decreasing fees, percentages, or allowances of 
public officers, during the term for which said officers are elected or 
appointed ; 

Changing the law of descent ; 

Granting to any corporation, association, or individual the right to lay 
down railroad tracks, or amending existing charters for such purpose. 

Granting to .any corporation, association, or individual any special or 
exclusive privilege, immunity, or franchise whatever. 

In all other cases where a general law can be made applicable, no 
special law shall be enacted. 

§ 23. The General Assembly shall have no power to release or ex- 
tinguish, in whole or in part, the indebtedness, liability, or obligation of 
any corporation or individual to this State or to any municipal corpora- 
tion therein. 

IMPEACHMENT 

§ 24. The House of Representatives shall have the sole power of im- 
peachment ; but a majority of all the members elected must concur 
therein. All impeachments shall be tried by the Senate ; and when sit- 
ting for that purpose, the senators shall be upon oath or affirmation, to 
do justice according to law and evidence. "When the governor of the 
State is tried, the chief justice shall preside. No person shall be con- 
victed without the concurrence of two-thirds of the senators elected. 
But judgment, in such cases, shall not extend f urther than removal from 
office, and disqualification to hold any office of honor, profit, or trust 
under the government of this State. The party, whether convicted or 
acquitted, shall, nevertheless, be liable to prosecution, trial, judgment, 
and punishment according to law. 

MISCELLANEOUS 

§ 25. The General Assembly shall provide, bylaw, that the fuel, sta- 
tionery, and printing paper furnished for the use of the State ; the copy- 
ing, printing, binding, and distributing the laws and journals, and all 
<>t lici' printing ordered by the General Assembly, shall be let by contract 
to tin- lowest responsible bidder; but the General Assembly shall fix a 
maximum price; and no member thereof , or other officer of the State, 
shall be interested, directly or indirectly, in such contract. But all such 
contracts shall be subject to the approval of the governor, and if he dis- 
approves the same, there shall be a re-letting of the contract, in such 
manner as shall be prescribed by law. 



CONSTITUTION 210 

8 2fi. The State of Illinois shall never be made defendant In any 
court of Law or equity. 

§ 27. The General Assembly shall nave no power to authorize lot- 
teries or gif! enterprises, for any purpose, and shall pass laws to prohibit 
the sale of Lottery or gifl enterprise I Lckets in this Stat". 

S 38. No Law shall be passed which shall operate to extend the term 
of any public officer after his election or appointment. 

§ 29. it Bhal] lie the duty of the General Assembly to pass such 
laws as may be necessary for the protection of operative miners, by pro- 
viding for ventilation, when the same may be required, and the con- 
struction of escapement Bhaf ts, or such other appliances a- may secure 

safety in all coal mines, to provide for the enforcement of said law- by 

such penalties and punishments as may he deemed proper. 

§30. The General Assembly may provide for establishing and open- 
ing roads and cartways, connected with a public road, for private and 
public use. 

§ 31.* The General Assembly may pass law- permitting the owners 
of land to construct drains, ditches, and Leve< - for agricultural, sanitary, 
or mining purposes, across the lands of others, and provide for the organ- 
ization of drainage districts, and vest the corporate authorities thereof 

with power to construct and maintain levee-, drain-, and ditche-. and to 
keep in repair all drains, ditches, and Levees heretofore constructed under 
the laws of this State, by special assessments upon the property bene- 
fited thereby. 

S :{;.'. The General Assembly shall pass liberal homestead and ex- 
emption laws. 

§ 33. The General Assembly -hall not appropriate out of the State 
treasury, or expend on account of the newcapitol grounds, and construc- 
tion, completion, and furnishing of the Statehouse, a sum exceeding, in 
the aggregate, three and a half millions of dollars. Inclusive of all appro- 
priations heretofore made, without first submitting the proposition for 
an additional expenditure to the legal voters of the State, at a general 
election ; nor unless a majority of all votes cast at such election shall be 
for the proposed additional expenditure. 

ARTICLE V 

EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT 

§ 1. The executive department shall consist of a governor, lieutenant- 
governor, secretary of state, auditor of public accounts, treasurer, 
superintendent of public instruction, and attorney-general, who shall 
each, with the exception of treasurer, hold his office for the term of four 

* As amended iu 1878. 



220 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

years from the second Monday of January next after his election, and 
until his successor is elected and qualified. They shall, except the 
Lieutenant-governor, reside at the seat of government during the term of 
office, and keep the public records, books, and papers there, and shall 
perform such duties as may be prescribed by law. 

§ 2. The treasurer shall hold his office for the term of two years, and 
until his successor is elected and qualified ; and shall be ineligible to 
said office for 1 wo years next after the end of the term for which he was 
elected. He may be required by the governor to give reasonable addi- 
tional security, and in default of so doing his office shall be deemed 
vacant. 



§ 3. An election for governor, lieutenant-governor, secretary of 
state, auditor of public accounts, and attorney-general, shall be held on 
the Tuesday next after the first Monday of November, in the year of our 
Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, and every four years 
thereafter ; for superintendent of public instruction, on the Tuesday next 
after the first Monday of November, in the year one thousand eight hun- 
dred and seventy, and every four years thereafter; and for treasurer, on 
the day last above mentioned, and every two years thereafter, at such 
places and in such manner as may be prescribed by law. 

§ 4. The returns of every election for the above-named officers shall 
be sealed up and transmitted, by the returning officers, to the secretary 
of slate, directed to "The Speaker of the House of Representatives," who 
shall, immediately after the organization of the house, and before pro- 
ceeding to other business, open and publish the same in the presence of a 
majority of each house of the General Assembly, who shall for that pur- 
pose assemble in the hall of the House of Representatives. The person 
having the highest number of votes for either of said offices, shall be de- 
clared duly elected ; but if two or more have an equal, and the highest 
number of votes, the General Assembly shall, by joint ballot, choose one 
of such persons for said office. Contested elections for all of said offices 
shall be determined by both houses of the General Assembly, by joint 
ballot, in such manner as may be prescribed by law. 

ELIGIBILITY 

8 5. No person shall he eligible to the office of governor, or lieuten- 
ant-governor, who shall not have attained the age of thirty years, and 
been for live years next preceding Ids elect ion a citizen of the United 
States and of this State. Neither the governor, lieutenant-governor, 
auditor of public accounts, secretary of slate, superintendent of public 
Instruction, nor attorney-general shall he eligible to any other office 
during the period for which he shall have been elected. 



CONSTITUTION 22l 



GOVERNOR 

S 6. The supreme executive power shall be vested in the governor, 
who slwill lake care that the laws he faithfully executed. 

s 7. The governor shall, at the commencement of each session, and 
at the close of his term of office, give to the General Assembly informa- 
tion, by message, of the condition of the state, and -hall recommend 
Buch measures as he shall deem expedient. Be shall account to the 
General Assembly, and accompany hi> message with a statemenl <>f all 
moneys received and paid out by him from any funds Bubject to Ids 
order, with vouchers, and, at the commencement of each regular session, 
present estimates of the amount of money required tn be raised by tax- 
ation for all purposes. 

S h. The governor may, on extraordinary occasions, convene the Gen- 
eral Assembly, by proclamation, Btating therein the purpose tor which 
they are convened ; and the General Assembly shall enter upon do busi- 
ness except that for which they were called together. 

8 «.». In ease of a disagreement between the two houses with respect 
to the time of adjournment, the governor may, on the same being cer- 
tified to him by the house first moving the adjournment, adjourn the 
General Assembly to Buch time as he thinks proper, not beyond the Ural 

day of the next regular session. 

§ 10. The governor shall nominate and, by and with the advice and 

consent of the Senate (a majorit y of all t he senators elected concurring 
hy yeas and nays) , appoint all officers whose offices are established by 
this Constitution, or which may he created by law, and whose appoint- 
ment or election is not otherwise provided for ; and no such officer shall 
lie appointed or elected i>y the General Assembly. 

§ 11. In case of vacancy, during the recess of the Senate, In any 
Office which is not elective, the governor shall make a temporary appoint- 
ment until the next meeting Of the Senate, when he shall nominate some 
person to fill such office; and any person so nominated, who i> con- 
firmed by the Senate (a majority of all the senators elected concurring 
hy yeas and nays), shall hold his office during the remainder of the term, 
and until his successor shall he appointed and qualified. No person, 
after being rejected by the Senate, shall be again nominated for the 
same office at the same session, unless at the request of the Senate, 
or he appointed to the same office during the recess of the General 
Assemhly. 

§ 12. The governor shall have power to remove any officer whom he 
may appoint, in case of incompetency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in 
office ; and he may declare his office vacant and till the same as is herein 
provided in other cases of vacancy, 

§13. The governor shall have power to grant reprieves, commu- 
tations, and pardons, after conviction, for all offences, subject to such 



222 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

regulations as may be provided by law relative to the manner of apply- 
ing therefor. 

§ 14. The governor shall be commander-in-chief of the military and 
naval forces of the State (except when they shall be called into the ser- 
vice of the United States) ; and may call out the same to execute the 
laws, suppress insurrection, and repel invasion. 

§ 15. The governor, and all civil officers of this State, shall be liable 
to impeachment for any misdemeanor in office. 

VETO 

§ 16. Every bill passed by the General Assembly shall, before it be- 
comes a law, be presented to the governor. 

If he approve, he shall sign it, and thereupon it shall become a law ; 
but if he do not approve, he shall return it, with his objections, to the 
house in which it shall have originated, which house shall enter the ob- 
jections at large upon its journal, and proceed to reconsider the bill. If, 
then, two-thirds of the members elected agree to pass the same, it shall 
be sent, together with the objections, to the other house, by which it 
shall likewise be reconsidered ; and if approved by two-thirds of the 
members elected to that house, it shall become a law, notwithstanding 
the objections of the governor. But in all such cases, the vote of each 
house shall be determined by yeas and nays, to be entered on the journal.* 

* Bills making appropriations of money out of the treasury shall spe- 
cify the objects and purposes for which the same are made, and appro- 
priate to them respectively their several amounts in distinct items and 
sections, and if the governor shall not approve any one or more of the 
items or sections contained in any bill, but shall approve the residue 
thereof, it shall become a law as to the residue in like manner as if he 
had signed it. 

* The governor shall then return the bill, with his objections to the 
items or sections of the same not approved by him, to the house in which 
the bill shall have originated, which house shall enter the objections at 
large upon its journal, and proceed to reconsider so much of the said bill 
as is not approved by the governor. 

* The same proceedings shall be had in both houses in reconsidering 
t lie same as is hereinbefore provided in case of an entire bill returned by 
the governor with his objections ; and if any item or section of said bill 
not approved by the governor shall be passed by two-thirds of the mem- 
bers elected to each of the two houses of the General Assembly, it shall 
become part of said law, notwithstanding the objections of the governor. 
Any bill which shall not be returned by the governor within ten days 
(Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, shall be- 
come a law in like manner as if he had signed it ; unless the General 

* Amendment of 1884. 



CONSTITUTION 223 

Assembly shall, by their adjournment, prevent its return : in which case 
it shall be filed, with his object Ions, in the office of the secretary of state, 
within ten days after such adjournment, or become a law. 

LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR 

§ 17. In case of the death, conviction, or impeachment, failure to 
qualify, resignation, absence from the State, or other disability of the 
governor, the powers, duties, and emoluments of the office for the residue 
of the term, or until the disability Bhall be removed, shall devolve upon 
the lieutenant-governor. 

§ 18. The lieutenant-governor shall be president of the Senate, and 
shall vote only when the Senate is equally divided. The Senate shall 
choose a president, pro tempore, to preside In case of the absence or 
Impeachment of t he Lieutenant-governor, or when be shall hold the office 
of governor. 

§ 19. If there bo no lieutenant-governor, or if the lieutenant-gov- 
ernor shall, for any of the causes specified in section seventeen of this 
article, become incapable of performing the duties of the office, the 
president of the Senate shall act as governor until the vacancy is filled or 
the disability removed ; and if the president of the Senate, for any of the 
above-named causes, shall become incapable of performing the duties of 
governor, the same shall devolve upon the Bpeaker of the Bouse of Rep- 
resentatives. 

OTHER STATE OFFICERS 

B :30. If the office of auditor of public accounts, treasurer, secre- 
tary of state, attorney-general, or superintendent of public instruction 
shall be vacated by death, resignation, or otherwise, it shall be the duty 
Of the governor to fill the same by appointment, and the appointee shall 
hold his office until his successor shall be elected and qualified in such 
manner as may be provided bylaw. An account shall be kept by the 
officers of the Executive Department, and of all the public institutions of 
the State, of all moneys received or disbursed by them, severally, from 
all sources, and for every service performed, and a semi-annual report 
thereof be made to the governor, under oath ; and any officer who makes 
a false report shall be guilty of perjury, and be punished accordingly. 

§ 21. The officers of the Executive Department, and of all the public 
institutions of the State, shall, at least ten days preceding each regular 
session of the General Assembly, severally report to the governor, who 
shall submit such reports to the General Assembly, together with the 
reports of the judges of the supreme court of defects in the Constitution 
and laws; and the governor may at anytime require information, in 
writing, under oath, from the officers of the Executive Department, and 
all officers and managers of State institutions, upon any subject relating 
to the condition, management, and expenses of their respective offices. 



224: THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 



THE SEAL, OF STATE 

6 22. There shall he a seal of* the State, which shall be called the 
"Great Seal of the State of Illinois," which shall he kept by the secre- 
tary of state, and used by him, officially, as directed by law. 

FEES AND SALARIES 

§ 23. The officers named in this article shall receive for their ser- 
vices a salary, to be established by law, which shall not be increased or 
diminished during their official terms, and they shall not, after the expi- 
ration of the terms of those in office at the adoption of this Constitution, 
receive to their own use any fees, costs, perquisites of office, or other 
compensation. And all fees that may hereafter be payable by law for 
any services performed by any officer provided for in this article of the 
Constitution, shall be paid in advance into the State treasury. 

DEFINITION AND OATH OF OFFICE 

§ 24. An office is a public position created by the Constitution or 
law, continuing during the pleasure of the appointing power, or for a 
fixed time, with a successor elected or appointed. An employment is 
an agency, for a temporary purpose, which ceases when that purpose is 
accomplished. 

§ 25. All civil officers except members of the General Assembly and 
such inferior officers as may be bylaw exempted, shall, before they enter 
on the duties of their respective offices, take and subscribe the following 
oath or affirmation. 

" I do solemnly swear (or affirm, as the case may be) that I will support the 
Constitution of the United States, and the Constitution of the State of Illinois, and 

that I will faithfully discharge the duties of the office of according to the beet 

of my ability." 

And no other oath, declaration, or test shall be required as a qualifica- 
tion. 

ARTICLE VI 

JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 

8 1. The judicial powers, except as in this article is otherwise pro- 
vided, shall be vested in one supreme court, circuit courts, county courts, 
justices of the peace, police magistrates, and in such courts as may be 
created by law in and for cities and incorporated towns. 

SUPREME COURT 

8 2. The supreme court shall consist of seven judges, and shall have 
original jurisdiction incases relating to the revenue, in mandamus and 



CONSTITUTION 226 

habeas corpus, and appellate jurisdiction iii all other case-. One of said 

judges shall be chief justice; four Bhall constitute a quorum, and the 

concurrence of four shall he necessary to every decision. 

8 !{. No person shall he eligible to the office of judge of the supreme 
court unless he shall he at ha-t thirty years of aire, and a citizen of the 

United states, nor unless he shall ha\e resided in this state five rears 

next preceding his election, and he a resident of the district in which he 

shall he elected. 

S 1. Terms of the supreme court -hall continue to lie held in the 

present grand divisions at the several places dow provided (or holding 
the same; and until otherwise provided by law, one or more terms of 
.said court shall he held, for the northern division, i;i the city of Chicago 
each year at such times as said court may appoint, whenever said city or 
the countyof Cook shall appoint appropriate rooms therefor, and the 
use of a suitable library, without expense to the state. The judicial 
divisions may he altered, increased, or diminished in number, and the 
times and places of holding said court may he changed by law. 

S ."). The present grand divisions shall he preserved, and he denom- 
inated Southern, Central, and Northern, until otherwise provided bj law. 

The State shall be divided into seven districts for the election of judges, 

and until otherwise provided by law, they shall be as follows: 

Mm District. — The counties of St. Clair, Clinton. Washington, Jeffer- 
son, Wayne-, Edwards, Wabash, White. Hamilton. Franklin, l'erry. 
Randolph, .Monroe, Jackson, Williamson, Saline, Callatin, Hardin. Pope, 
Union, Johnson, Alexander. Pulaski, and Massac. 

Second District. — The counties of Madison, Bond, Marion. Clay, 
Richland, Lawrence, Crawford, Jasper, Effingham, Fayette. Montgom- 
ery, Macoupin, Shelby, Cumberland, Clark, Greene, Jersey, Calhoun, 
and Christian. 

Third District. — The counties of Sangamon, Macon. Logan, De Witt, 
Piatt, Douglas, Champaign, Vermilion, McLean, Livingston, Ford. 
Iroquois, Coles, Edgar, Moultrie, and Tazewell. 

Fourth District. — The counties of Fulton. MsDonough, Hancock, 
Schuyler, Brown, Adams, pike. Mason, Menard, Morgan, Cass, and 
Scott. 

Fifth District. — The count ies of Knox, Warren, Henderson, Mercer, 
Henry, Stark, Peoria, Marshall, Putnam, Bureau, LaSalle. Grundy, and 
Woodford. 

Si.rt li District. — The counties of Whiteside, Carroll, Jo Daviess. Ste- 
phenson, Winnebago, Boone, McHenry, Kane, Kendall. DeKalb, Lee, 
Ogle, and Rock Island. 

Seventh District. — The counties of Lake, Cook. Will. Kankakee, and 
DuPage. 

The boundaries of the districts may be changed at the session of the 
General Assembly next preceding the election for judges therein, and at 

15 



226 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

no other time; but whenever such alterations shall he made, the same 
shall be upon the rule of equality of population, as nearly as county 
boundaries will allow, and the districts shall be composed of contiguous 
counties, in as nearly compact form as circumstances will permit. 
The alteration of the districts shall not affect the tenure of office of any 
judge. 

§ (5. At the time of voting on the adoption of this Constitution, one 
judge of the supreme court shall be elected by the electors thereof, in 
each of said districts numbered two, three, six, and seven, who shall hold 
his office for the term of nine years from the first Monday of June, in 
the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy. The 
term of office of judges of the supreme court, elected after the adoption 
of this Constitution, shall be nine years ; and on the first Monday of 
June of the year in which the term of any of the judges in the office at 
the adoption of this Constitution, or of the judges then elected, shall 
expire, and every nine years thereafter, there shall be an election for 
the successor or successors of such judges, in the respective districts 
wherein the term of such judges shall expire. The chief justice shall 
continue to act as such until the expiration of the term for which he was 
elected, after which the judges shall choose one of their number chief 
justice. 

§ 7. From and after the adoption of this Constitution, the judges of 
the supreme court shall each receive a salary of four thousand dollars 
per annum, payable quarterly, until otherwise provided by law. And 
after said salaries shall be fixed bylaw, the salaries of the judges in office 
shall not be increased or diminished during the term for which said 
judges shall have been elected. 

§ 8. Appeals and writs of error may be taken to the supreme court, 
held in the grand division in which the case is decided, or, by consent of 
the parties, to any other grand division. 

§ 9. The supreme court shall appoint one reporter of its decisions, 
who shall hold his office for six years, subject to removal by the court. 

§ 10. At the time of the election for representatives in the General 
Assembly, happening next preceding the expiration of the terms of office 
of the present clerks of said court, one clerk of said court for each di- 
vision shall be elected, whose term of office shall be six years from said 
election, but who shall not enter upon the duties of his office until the 
expiration of the term of his predecessor, and every six years thereafter 
one clerk of said court for each division shall be elected. 

APPEI.L.ATK COURTS 

§ 11. After the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and 
seventy-four, inferior appellate courts, of uniform organization and juris- 
diction, inay be created in districts formed for that purpose, to which 



CONSTITUTION 227 

such appeals and writs of error as the General Assembly may provide 
may be prosecuted from circuit or other court-, and from which appeals 
and writs of error shall lie to the supreme court, in all criminal cases, 
and cases in which a Franchise, or freehold, or the validity of a statute Is 
involved, and in such other cases as may he provided by law. Such ap- 
pellate courts shall he held by such number of judges of the circuit 
courts, and at, such times and places, and in such manner as may he pro- 
vided bylaw; but no Judge shall sit in review upon cases decided by 

him ; nor shall said judges receive any additional compensation for such 
service-. 

CIRCUIT COURTS 

§ 12. The circuit courts shall have original jurisdiction of all causes 
in law and equity, and such appellate jurisdiction as i- or may be pro- 
vided by law, and shall hold two or more terms each year in every county. 

The terms of office of judges <>f circuit courts shall he six yean, 

§ 13. The state, exclusive of thecounty of Cook and other counties 
having a population of one hundred thousand, shall be divided into ju- 
dicial circuits, prior to the expiration of the terms of office of the present 

judges of the circuit courts. Such circuits shall he formed of contig- 
uous counties, in as nearly compact form and as nearly equal as circum- 
stances will permit, having due regard to business, territory. and popula- 
tion, and shall not exceed in number one circuit for every one hundred 
thousand of population in the State. One judge shall he elected forcac h 
of said circuits by the electors thereof. New circuits may he formed 

and the boundaries of circuits changed by the General Assembly, at its 
session next preceding the election for circuit judges, but at no other 

time. Provided, that the circuits may be equalised or changed at the 
first session of the General Assembly after the adoption of this Consti- 
tution. The creation, alteration, or change of any circuit shall not affect 
the tenure of office of any judge. Whenever the business u f the circuit 
court of any one, or of two or more contiguous counties, containing a 
population exceeding fifty thousand, shall occupy nine months of the 
year, the General Assembly may make of such county, or counties, a 
separate circuit. Whenever additional circuits are created. The fore- 
going limitations shall be observed. 

§ 14. The General Assembly shall provide for the times of holding 
court in each county ; which shall not be changed, except by the Gen- 
eral Assembly next preceding the general election for judges of said 
courts; but additional terms may be provided for in any county. The 
election for judges of the circuit courts shall be held on the first Monday 
in June, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sev- 
enty-three, and every six years thereafter. 

§ 15. The General Assembly may divide the State into judicial cir- 
cuits of greater population and territory, in lieu of the circuits provided 



228 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

for in section thirteen of this article, and provide for the election therein, 
severally, by the electors thereof, by general ticket, of not exceeding lour 

judges, who shall hold the circuit courts in the circuit for which they 
shall he elected, in such manner as may be provided by law. 

S lti. From and after the adoption of this Constitution, judges of 
the circuit courts shall receive a salary of three thousand dollars per 
annum, payable quarterly, until otherwise provided by law. And after 
their salaries shall be fixed by law, they shall not be increased or di- 
minished during the terms for which said judges shall be respectively 
elected; and from and after the adoption of this Constitution, no judge 
of the supreme or circuit court shall receive any other compensation, 
perquisites, or benefit, in any form whatsoever, nor perform any other 
than judicial duties to which may belong any emoluments. 

§ 17. No person shall be eligible to the office of judge of the circuit 
or any inferior court, or to membership in the Board of County Com- 
missioners, unless he shall be at least twenty-five years of age, and a 
citizen of the United States, nor unless he shall have resided in this 
State five years next preceding his election, and be a resident of the 
circuit, county, city, cities, or incorporated town in which he shall he 
elected. 

COUNTY COURTS 

§ 18. There shall he elected in and for each county, one county 
judge and one clerk of the county court, whose term of office shall be 
four years. But the General Assemhly may create districts of two or 
more contiguous counties, in each of which shall be elected one judge, 
who shall take the place of and exercise the powers and jurisdiction of 
county judges in such districts. County courts shall he courts of rec- 
ord, and shall have original jurisdiction in all matters of prohate; set- 
tlement of estates of deceased persons; appointment of guardians and 
conservators, and settlements of their accounts; in all matters relating 
to apprentices; and in proceedings for the collection of taxes and 
assessments, and such other jurisdiction as may be provided for by 
general law. 

B !•••. Appeals and writs of error shall be allowed from final deter- 
minations of county courts, as may he provided by law. 

PROBATE COURTS 

8 20. The General Assembly may provide for the establishment of a 
probate court in each county having a population of over fifty thousand, 
and for the election of a judge thereof, whose term of office shall be the 
Bame as thai of the county judge, and who shall be elected at the same 
time and In the same manner. Said courts, when established, shall 
have original jurisdiction of all prohate matters, (he settlement of estates 



CONSTITUTION 229 

of deceased persons, the appointment of guardians and conservators, 
and set! Lementa of their accounts; in all matters relating to apprentices, 
and in cases of sales of real estate of deceased persons for the payment 
of debts. 

JUSTICES OF THE PEACE AND CONSTABLES 

8 21. Justices of the peace, police magistrates, ami constables shall 
be elected in and for such districts as are, or may be, provided by law, 
and the jurisdiction of such justices of the peace and police magistrates 
shall he, uniform. 

STATE'S ATTORNEYS 

8 22. At the election for members of the General Assembly in the 
year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, and 
every four years thereafter, there shall be elected a State's attorney in 
and for each county, in lieu of the state's attorneys mm provided bj 
law, whose term of office shall he four years. 



COURTS OK COOK COUNTY 

8 23. The county of Cook shall he one judicial circuit. The cir- 
cuit court of Cook County shall consist of Ave judges, until their number 

shall he increased, as herein provided. The present judge of the record- 
er's court of the city of Chicago, and the present judge Of the circuit 
court of Cook County, shall be two of said judges, and shall remain in 
Office for the terms for which they were respectively elected, and until 
their successors shall he elected and qualified. The superior court of 
Chicago Shall be continued and called the "Superior Court of Cook 
County.'" The General Assembly may increase the number of said 
judges, by adding one to either of said courts for every additional fifty 
thousand inhabitants in said county over and above ;> population of 
four hundred thousand. The terms of office of the judges of said 
courts, hereafter elected, shall be six years. 

8 24. The judge having the shortest unexpired term shall he chief 
justice of the court of which he is a judge. In case there are two or more 
whose tei'ms expire at the same time, it may be determined by lot which 
shall be chief justice. Any judge of either of said courts shall have all 
the powers of a circuit judge, and may hold the court of which he is a 
member. Each of them may hold a different branch thereof at the same 
time. 

8 25. The judges of the superior and circuit courts, and the State's 
attorney, in said county, shall receive the same salaries, payable out of 
the State treasury, as is or may be paid from said treasury to the circuit 
judges and State's attorneys of the State, and such further compensa- 
tion, to be paid by the county of Cook, as is or may be provided by law. 



230 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

Such compensation shall not he changed during their continuance in 
office. 

§ 26. The recorder's court of the city of Chicago shall be continued, 
and shall be called the " Criminal Court of Cook County.' 1 It shall have 
the jurisdiction of a circuit court in all cases of criminal and quasi crim- 
inal nature, arising in the county of Cook, or that may be brought be- 
fore said court pursuant to law ; and all recognizances and appeals taken 
in said county in criminal and quasi criminal cases shall be returnable 
and taken to said court. It shall have no jurisdiction in civil cases, except 
in those on behalf of the people, and incident to such criminal or quasi 
criminal matters, and to dispose of unfinished business. The terms of 
said criminal court of Cook County shall be held by one or more of the 
judges of the circuit or superior court of Cook County, as nearly as may 
be in alternation, as may be determined by said judges, or provided by 
law. Said judges shall be ex officio judges of said court. 

§ 27. The present clerk of the recorder's court of the city of Chicago 
shall be the clerk of the criminal court of Cook County during the term 
for which he was elected. The present clerks of the superior court of 
Chicago, and the present clerk of the circuit court of Cook County, shall 
continue in office during the terms for which they were respectively 
elected ; and thereafter there shall be but one clerk of the superior 
court, to be elected by the qualified electors of said county, who shall 
hold his office for the term of four years, and until his successor is elected 
and qualified. 

§ 28. All justices of the peace in the city of Chicago shall be ap- 
pointed by the governor, by and with the advice and consent of the 
Senate (but only upon the recommendation of a majority of the judges 
of the circuit, superior, and county courts), and for such districts as are 
now or shall hereafter be provided by law. They shall hold their offices 
for four years, and until their successors have been commissioned and 
qualified ; but they may be removed by summary proceeding, in the cir- 
cuit or superior court, for extortion or other malfeasance. Existing jus- 
tices of the peace and police magistrates may hold their offices until the 
expiration of their respective terms. 

GENERAL, PROVISIONS 

8 29. All judicial officers shall be commissioned by the governor. All 
laws relating to courts shall be general, and of uniform operation ; and 
the organization, jurisdiction, powers, proceedings, and practice of all 
court* of the same class or grade, so far as regulated by law, and the 
force and effect of the process, judgments, and decrees of such courts, 
severally, shall be uniform. 

§ 30. The General Assembly may, for cause entered on the journals, 
upon due notice and opportunity of defence, remove from office any 



CONSTITUTION 231 

judge, upon concurrence of three-fourths of all the members elected of 

each house. All ot her officers in t bis art icle mentioned shall be removed 
from office, on prosecution and final conviction, tor misdemeanor in 
office. 

B 31. All judges of courts <d record interior to the supreme court 
shall, on or before the first day of June of each rear, report in writing to 
the judges of the supreme court such defects and omissions in the laws 
as their experience may suggest; and the judges of the supreme court 
shall, on or before the first day of January of each year, report in writing 
to the governor sucb defects and omissions in the Constitution and laws 

as they may find to exist, together with appropriate form- of hills to cure 
such defects and omissions in the laws. And the judges of the several 
circuit courts shall report to the next General Assembly the number of 
days they have held court in the several counties composing their re- 
spective circuits the preceding two years. 

s :;:.'. All officers provided tor in this article shall hold their offices 
until their successor- shall lie qualified, and they -hall, respectively, re- 
side in the division, circuit, county, or district for which they may he 
elected or appointed. The term- of Office of all SUOh Officers, where not 
otherwise prescribed in this article, -hall he four year-. All officers, 
where not otherwise provided for in this article, -hall perform BUCfa 
duties and receive such compensation a- i-. or may he. provided by law. 
Vacancies in such elective offices shall he filled by election : hut where 
the unexpired term does not exceed one year, the vacancy shall he filled 

by appointment, as follows: of judges, by the governor; of clerks of 
courts, by the court to which the office appertains, or by the judge or 
judges thereof; and of all such other offices, by the Hoard of Supervisors, 
or Hoard of County Commissioners, in. the county where the vacancy 
occurs. 

s :>:>. All process shall run : In the name of the r<<>i>l< of the State of 
Illinois; and all prosecutions shall he carried on : In the name and by the 
authority of the Pc>i>u of tin State of lUinoto; and conclude : Against the 

peace and dignity of tlic soiik. "Population,* 1 wherever used in this 
article, shall be determined by the next preceding census of this State. 
or of the United States. 

ARTICLE VII 

SUFFRAGE 

§ 1. Every person having resided in this State one year, in the 
county ninety days, and in the election district thirty days next preced- 
ing any election therein, who was an elector in this State on the first day 
of April, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and forty- 
eight, or obtained a certificate of naturalization, before any court of 
record in this State, prior to the first day of January, in the year of our 



232 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy, or who shall he a male 
citizen of the United States, above the age of twenty-one years, shall be 
entitled to vote at sueh election. 

S 2. All votes shall be by ballot. 

§ 3. Electors shall, in all cases except treason, felony, or breach of 
the peace, be privileged from arrest during their attendance at elections, 
and in going to and returning from the same. And no elector shall be 
obliged to do military duty on the days of election, except in time of war 
or public danger. 

§ 4. No elector shall be deemed to have lost his residence in this 
State by reason of his absence on the business of the United States, or 
of this State, or in the military or naval service of the United States. 

§ 5. No soldier, seaman, or marine in the army or navy of the United 
States shall be deemed a resident of this State in consequence of being 
stationed therein. 

§ 6. No person shall be elected or appointed to any office in this 
State, civil, or military, who is not a citizen of the United States, and 
who shall not have resided in this State one year next preceding the 
election or appointment. 

§ 7. The General Assembly shall pass laws excluding from the right 
of suffrage persons convicted of infamous crimes. 

ARTICLE VIII 

EDUCATION 

§ 1. The General Assembly shall provide a thorough and efficient 
system of free schools, whereby all children of this State may receive a 
good common school education. 

§ 2. All lands, moneys, or other property, donated, granted, or 
received for school, college, seminary, or university purposes, and the 
proceeds thereof, shall be faithfully applied to the objects for which 
sucli gifts or grants were made. 

§ 3. Neither the General Assembly nor any county, city, town, 
township, school district, or other public corporation, shall ever make 
any appropriation or pay from any public fund whatever, anything in 
aid of any church or sectarian purpose, or to help support or sustain any 
school, academy, seminary, college, university, or other literary or scien- 
tific institution, controlled by any church or sectarian denomination 
whatever; nor shall any grant or donation of land, money, or other per- 
sonal property ever be made by the State, or any such public corporation, 
to any church, or for any sectarian purpose. 

§ 4. No teacher, State, county, township, or district school officer 
shall be Interested in the sale, proceeds or profits of any book, apparatus, 
or furniture, used or to be used, in any school in this State, with which 



CONSTITUTION 233 

such officer or teacher may he connected, under such penalties as may be 
provided by the General Assembly. 

8 5. There may he a county superintendent of schools in cadi 
county whose qualifications, powers, duties, compensation, and time 
and manner of election, and term of office, shall be prescribed by law. 

ARTICLE IX 

KKVKMi; 

8 1. The General Assembly shall provide such revenue as may be 
needful by Levying a tax, l>y valuation, so that every person and corpo- 
ration shall pay a tax in proportion t<> the value of hi-, her, <>r it- 
property — such value to be ascertained by some person or persons, t<» be 
elected <>r appointed in such manner as the General Assembly shall 
direct, and not otherwise; hut the General Assembly shall have power 
to tax peddlers, auctioneers, brokers, hawkers, merchants, commission 
merchants, showmen, jugglers, Inn-keepers, grocery-keepers, Liquor- 
dealers, toll-bridgeB, ferries, Insurance, telegraph and express Interests 
or business, venders of patents, and persons <>r corporations owning or 
using franchises and privileges, in Bucb manner as LI -hall, from time to 
time, direct by general law, uniform as to the class upon which it 
operates. 

8 2. The specification of the objects and subjects of taxation shall 
not deprive the General Assembly of the power to require other subjects 
or objects to be taxed, in BUCh manner as may he consistent with the 

principles of taxation tixed in this Constitution. 

8 3. The property of the State, counties, and other municipal cor- 
porations, hoth real and personal, and such other property, as may he 
used exclusively for agricultural and horticultural societies, for school, 
religious, cemetery, and charitable purposes, may be exempted from tax- 
ation ; but such exemption shall he only by general law. In the assess- 
ment of real estate incumbered by public easement, any depreciation 
occasioned by such easement may he deducted in the valuation of such 
property. 

8 4. The General Assembly shall provide, in all eases where it may 
be necessary to sell real estate for the non-payment of taxes or special 
assessments, for State, county, municipal, or other purposes, that a return 
of such unpaid taxes or assessments shall he made to some general officer 
of the county, having authority to receive State and county taxes ; and 
there shall he no sale of said property for any of said taxes or assess- 
ments hut by said officer, upon the order or judgment of some court of 
record. 

8 5. The right of redemption from all sales of real estate, for the 
non-payment of taxes or special assessments of any character whatever. 



234 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

shall exist in favor of owners and persons interested in such real estate, 
for a period of not less than two years from such sales thereof. And 
the General Assembly shall provide, by law, for reasonable notice to be 
given to the owners or parties interested, by publication or otherwise, of 
the fact of the sale of the property for such taxes or assessments, and 
when the time of redemption shall expire : Provided, that occupants 
shall in all cases be served with personal notice before the time of re- 
demption expires. 

'§ 6. The General Assembly shall have no power to release or dis- 
charge any county, city, township, town, or district, whatever, or the 
inhabitants thereof, or the property therein, from their or its proportion- 
ate share of taxes to be levied for State purposes, nor shall commutation 
for such taxes be authorized in any form whatsoever. 

§ 7. All taxes levied for State purposes shall be paid into the State 
treasury. 

§ 8. County authorities shall never assess taxes, the aggregate of 
which shall exceed seventy-five cents per one hundred dollars' valuation, 
except for the payment of indebtedness existing at the adoption of this 
Constitution, unless authorized by a vote of the people of the county. 

§ 9. The General Assembly may vest the corporate authorities of 
cities, towns, and villages, with power to make local improvements by 
special assessment or by special taxation of contiguous property, or 
otherwise. For all other corporate purposes, all municipal corporations 
may be vested with authority to assess and collect taxes ; but such taxes 
shall be uniform in respect to persons and property, within the jurisdic- 
tion of the body imposing the same. 

§ 10. The General Assembly shall not impose taxes upon municipal 
corporations, or the inhabitants or property thereof, for corporate pur- 
poses, but shall require that all the taxable property within the limits of 
municipal corporations shall be taxed for the payment of debts contracted 
under authority of law, such taxes to be uniform in respect to persons 
and property, within the jurisdiction of the body imposing the same. 
Private property shall not be liable to be taken or sold for the payment 
of the corporate debts of a municipal corporation. 

§ 11. No person who is in default, as collector or custodian of money 
or property belonging to a municipal corporation, shall be eligible to any 
office in or under such corporation. The fees, salary, or compensation of 
no municipal officer who is elected or appointed for a definite term of 
office, shall be increased or diminished during such term. 

§ 12. No county, city, township, school district, or other municipal 
corporation, shall be allowed to become indebted in any manner or for 
any purpose, to an amount, including existing indebtedness, in the ag- 
gregato exceeding five per centum on the value of the taxable property 
therein, to be ascertained by the last assessment for State and county 
taxes, previous to the incurring of such indebtedness. Any county, 



CONSTITUTION 235 

city, school district, or other municipal corporation, incurring any indebt- 
edness as aforesaid, shall before, or al tin; time of doing so, provide for 

the collection of a direct annual tax sufficient to pay the interest on BUCl) 
debt, as it falls due, and also to pay and discharge the principal thereof 
wit hin twenty year* from t he time of contracting the same. This section 
shall not be const rued to prevent any county, city, township, school dis- 
trict, or other municipal corporal Ion, from issuing their bonds in compli- 
ance with any vote of the people which may have been had prior to the 
adoption of this Constitution in pursuance of any law providing therefor. 
8 13.* The corporate authorities of the city of Chicago are hereby 
authorized to issue interest-bearing bonds of said city to an amount not 

exceeding five million dollars, at a pate of interest not to exceed five per 

centum per annum, the principal payable within thirty years from the 
date of their issue, and the proceeds thereof shall he paid to the treasurer 
of the World's Columbian Exposition, and used and disbursed by him 

under the direction and control of the directors, in aid of tin World's 
Columbian Exposition, to be held in the city of Chicago, Id pursuance of 
an act, of Congress of the United States. 

Provided, thai if at an election for the adoption of this amendment a 
majority of the votes cast wit iiin the limit s of the city of Chicago shall 

he against its adoption, then no honds shall lie issued under ihis amend- 
ment . 

And said corporate authorities shall he repaid as large a proportionate 
amount of the aid given by them as is repaid to the stockholders on the 

SUmS SUbsCTibed and paid by them, and the money BO received shall be 

used in the redemption of the honds issued as aforesaid, provided that 

said authorities may take in whole or in pari of the sum coming to them 
any permanent improvements placed <"> land held or controlled by them. 

And provided further, that no such indebtedness BO created shall in 
any part thereof be paid by the state, or from any state revenue, tax, or 
fund, hut the same shall be paid by the said city of Chicago alone. 



ARTICLE X 

COUNTIES 

§ 1. No new county shall be formed or established by the General 
Assembly, which will reduce the county or counties, or either of them, 
from which it shall be taken, to less contents than four hundred square 
miles ; nor shall any county be formed of less contents ; nor shall any 
line thereof pass within less than ten miles of any county seat of the 
county or counties proposed to be divided. 

§ 2. No county shall be divided, or have any part stricken there- 
from, without submitting the question to a vote of the people of the 

* Amendment of 1890. 



236 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

county, nor unless a majority of all the legal voters of the county, voting 
on the question, shall vote for the same. 

§ 3. There shall he no territory stricken from any county, unless a 
majority of the voters living in such territory shall petition for such di- 
vision : and no territory shall be added to any county without the con- 
sent of the majority of the voters of the county to which it is proposed 
to be added. But the portion so stricken off and added to another county, 
or formed in whole or in part into a new county, shall be holden for and 
obliged to pay its proportion of the indebtedness of the county from 
which it has been taken. 

COUNTY SEATS 

§ 4. No county seat shall be removed until the point to which it is 
proposed to be removed shall be fixed in pursuance of law, and three- 
fifths of the voters of the county, to be ascertained in such manner as 
shall be provided by general law, shall have voted in favor of its removal 
to such point ; and no person shall vote on such question who has not 
resided in the county six months, and in the election precinct ninety 
days next preceding such election. The question of the removal of a 
comity seat shall not be oftener submitted than once in ten years, to a 
vote of the people. But when an attempt is made to remove a county 
seat to a point nearer to the centre of a county, then a majority vote only 
shall be necessary. 

COUNTY GOVERNMENT 

§ 5. The General Assembly shall provide, by general law, for town- 
ship organization, under which any county may organize whenever a ma- 
jority of the legal voters of such county, voting at any general election, 
shall so determine, and whenever any county shall adopt township or- 
ganization, so much of this Constitution as provides for the management 
of the fiscal concerns of the said county by the Board of County Commis- 
sioners, may be dispensed with, and the affairs of said county may be 
transacted in such manner as the General Assembly may provide. And 
in any county that shall have adopted a township organization, the ques- 
tion of continuing the same may be submitted to a vote of the electors 
of such county, at a general election, in the manner that now is or may 
he provided by law ; and if a majority of all the votes cast upon that 
question shall be against township organization, then such organization 
shall cease in said county; and all laws in force in relation to counties 
not having township organization, shall immediately take effect and be 
in force in such county. No two townships shall have the same name, 
and the day of holding the annual township meeting shall be uniform 
throughout the state. 

S 0. At the first election of county judges under this Constitution, 
there shall be elected in each of the counties in this State, not under 



CONSTITUTION 

township organization, three officers, who shall be Btyled "The Board of 
County Commissioners," who shall hold sessions for the transaction of 
county business ;i> >h;ill be provided bylaw. One of said commissioners 
shall hold his office for one year, one for two years, and one for three 
years, to be determined by Loi : and every year thereafter one such offi- 
cer shall be elected in each of said counties for the term of three years. 
§ 7. The county affairs of Cook County shall be managed by a 
Board of Commissioners of fifteen persons, ten of whom shall be elected 
I'nmi the cityof Chicago, and live from towns outside of said city, in such 
manner as may be provided by law. 

COUNTY OFFICERS AM) TJIKIU COMPENSATION 

§ 8.* In each county there shall be elected the following county 

Officers, at the general election tO be held OS the Tuesday after the tir-t 

Monday in November, A. I). 1882: A county judge, county clerk, 

sheriff, and treasurer, and ;it the election to he held on the Tuesday after 
the flrst Monday in November, A. I). 1884, a coroner and clerk of 
the circuit court (who may be ex officio recorder of deeds, excepl In 
counties having 60,000 and more inhabitant-, in which counties a re- 
corder of deeds shall be elected al the general election in L884). Bach 
of said officers shall enter upon the duties of his office, respectively 
on the first Monday of December after his election, and they shall hold 
their respective offices for the term of four years, and until their succes- 
sors are elected and qualified: Provided, thai no person having once 
been elected to the office of sheriff or treasurer shall be eligible to re- 
election to said office for four years after the expiration of the term for 
which he shall have been elected. 

§ 0. The clerks of all the courts of record, the treasurer, sheriff, 
coroner, and recorder of deeds of Cook County, shall receive as their only 
compensation for their services, salaries to be lixed by law. which shall 
in no case be as much as the lawful compensation of a judge of the cir- 
cuit court of said county, and shall be paid, respectively, only out of the 
fees of the office actually collected. All fees, perquisites, and emolu- 
ments (above the amounts of said salaries i shall be paid into the county 
treasury. The number of the deputies and assistants of such officers 
shall be determined by rule of the circuit court, to be entered of record, 
and their compensation shall be determined by the county board. 

§ 10. The county board, except as provided in section nine of this 
article, shall fix the compensation of all county officers, with the amount 
of their necessary clerk hire, stationery, fuel, and other expenses, and in 
all cases where fees are provided for, said compensation shall be paid 
only out of, and shall in no instance exceed, the fees actually collected ; 

* As amended in 1880. 



238 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

they shall not allow either of them more per annum than fifteen hundred 
dollars, in counties not exceeding twenty thousand inhabitants; two 
thousand dollars, in counties containing twenty thousand and not exceed- 
ing thirty thousand inhabitants ; twenty-five hundred dollars, in counties 
containing thirty thousand anfl not exceeding fifty thousand inhabitants ; 
three thousand dollars, in counties containing fifty thousand and not ex- 
ceeding seventy thousand inhabitants; thirty-five hundred dollars, in 
counties containing seventy thousand and not exceeding one hundred 
thousand inhabitants ; and four thousand dollars, in counties containing 
one hundred thousand and not exceeding two hundred and fifty thousand 
inhabitants ; and not more than one thousand dollars additional compen- 
sation for each additional one hundred thousand inhabitants. Provided, 
that the compensation of no officer shall be increased or diminished dur- 
ing his term of office. All fees or allowances by them received, in excess 
of their said compensation, shall be paid into the county treasury. 

§ 11. The fees of township officers, and of each class of county officers, 
shall be uniform in the class of counties to which they respectively 
belong. The compensation herein provided for shall apply only to offi- 
cers hereafter elected, but all fees established by special laws shall cease 
at the adoption of this Constitution, and such officers shall receive only 
such fees as are provided by general law. 

§ 12. All laws fixing the fees of State, county, and township officers, 
shall terminate with the terms respectively of those who may be in 
office at the meeting of the first General Assembly after the adoption of 
this Constitution ; and the General Assembly shall, by general law, uni- 
form in its operation, provide for and regulate the fees of said officers 
and their successors, so as to reduce the same to a reasonable compensa- 
tion for services actually rendered. But the General Assembly may, by 
general law, classify the counties by population into not more than 
three classes, and regulate the fees according to class. This article shall 
not be construed as depriving the General Assembly of the power to 
reduce the fees of existing officers. 

§ 13. Every person who is elected or appointed to any office in this 
State, who shall be paid in whole or in part by fees, shall be required by 
law 1o make a semi-annual report, under oath, to some officer to be des- 
ignated by law, of all his fees and emoluments. 



ARTICLE XI 

CORPORATIONS 

SI. No corporation shall be created by special laws, or its charter 
extended, changed, or amended, except those for charitable, educational, 
penal, or reformatory purposes, which are to be and remain under the 
patronage and control of the State, but the General Assembly shall pro- 



CONSTITUTION 239 

vide, by general laws, for the organization of all corporations hereafter 
to 1"' created. 

§ 2. All existing charters or grants of special or exclusive privileges, 
under which organization shall not have taken place, or which shall not 
hare been in operation within ten days from the time- this Constitution 
takes effect, shall thereafter have no validity or effect whatever. 

§ 3. The General Assembly shall provide, by law, that in all elections 
for directors or managers of incorporated companies, every stockholder 
shall have the right to vote, in person or by proxy, for the number of 
shares of stock owned by him. for a- many persons as there arc directors 
and managers to he elected, or to cumulate aaid shares, and give one 
candidate as many votes OS the Dumber of director- multiplied hy the 
number of his shares of Btock, shall equal, or distribute them on the 
same principle among as many candidates as lie shall think fit ; and 
such directors or managers shall not he elected in any other manner. 

8 4. No law shall he passed hy the General Assembly, granting the 
right to construct and operate a street railroad within any city. town, or 

Incorporated village, without requiring the consent of the local authori- 
ties having the I ontrol of the street or highway proposed to he occupied 
hy SUCh street railroad. 

\\\ N K - 

8 5. Xo State hank shall hereafter he created, nor shall the State 
own or be liable for any stock in any corporation or joint stock company 
or association for banking purposes, now created, or to he hereafter cre- 
ated. Xo act of the General Assembly authorizing or creating corpora- 
tions or associations, with hanking powers, whether of issue, deposit, or 
discount, nor amendments thereto, shall go into effect, OT in any manner 
be in force, unless the same shall be submitted to a vote of the people at 
the general election next succeeding the passage of the same, and be ap- 
proved by a majority of all the votes cast at such an election for or 
against such law. 

S ti. Every stockholder in a banking corporation or institution shall 
be individually responsible and liable to its creditors, over and above the 
amount of stock by him or her held, to an amount equal to his or her 
respective shares so held, for all its liabilities accruing while he or she 
remains such stockholder. 

S 7. The suspension of specie payments by banking institutions, on 
their circulation, created by the laws of this State, shall never be per- 
mitted or sanctioned. Every banking association now, or which may 
hereafter be, organized under the laws of this State, shall make and 
publish a full and accurate quarterly statement of its affairs (which 
shall be certified to, under oath, by one or more of its officers), as may 
be provided by law. 

S 8. If a general banking law shall be enacted, it shall provide for 



240 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

the registry and countersigning, by an officer of State, of all bills or 
paper credit, designed to circulate as money, and require security, to 
the full amount thereof, to be deposited with the State treasurer, in 
United States or Illinois State stocks, to be rated at ten per cent, below 
their par value ; and in case of a depreciation of said stocks to the 
amount of ten per cent, below par, the bank or banks owning said stocks 
shall be required to make up said deficiency, by depositing additional 
stocks. And said law shall also provide for the recording of the names 
of all stockholders in such corporation, the amount of stock held by 
each, the time of any transfer thereof, and to whom such transfer is 
made. 

RAILROADS 

§ 9. Every railroad corporation organized or doing business in this 
State, under the laws or authority thereof, shall have and maintain a pub- 
lic office or place in this State for the transaction of its business, where 
transfers of stock shall be made, and in which shall be kept, for public 
inspection, books, in which shall be recorded the amount of capital stock 
subscribed, and by whom ; the names of the owners of its stock, and the 
amounts owned by them respectively ; the amount of stock paid in, and 
by whom; the transfers of said stock; the amount of its assets and 
liabilities, and the names and place of residence of its officers. The di- 
rectors of every railway corporation shall, annually, make a report, under 
oath, to the auditor of public accounts, or some officer to be designated 
by law, of all their acts and doings, which report shall include such mat- 
ters relating to railroads as may be prescribed by law. And the General 
Assembly shall pass laws enforcing by suitable penalties the provisions 
of this section. 

§ 10. The rolling stock and all other movable property belonging to 
any railroad company or corporation in this State shall be considered 
personal property, and shall be liable to execution and sale in the same 
manner as the personal property of individuals, and the General Assem- 
bly shall pass no law exempting any such property from execution and 
sale. 

8 11. No railroad corporation shall consolidate its stock, property, 
or franchise with any other railroad corporation owning a parallel or 
competing line; and in no case shall any consolidation take place except 
upon public notice given, of at least sixty days, to all stockholders, in 
such manner as maybe provided bylaw. A majority of the directors 
of any railroad corporation, now incorporated or hereafter to be incor- 
porate! by the laws of this State, shall be citizens and residents of this 
State 

g 12. Railways heretofore constructed, or that may hereafter be con- 
structed in this state, are hereby declared public highways, and shall be 
free to all persons, for the transportation of their persons and property 



CONSTITUTION 241 

thereon, under such regulations as may be prescribed by law. And the 
General Assembly shall, from time to i inn-, pass laws establishing reason- 
able max iui u in rates of charges for the transportation of passengers and 
freight <>n the different rail mads in this State. 

8 13. No railroad corporal ton shall issueanj slock or bonds, except for 
money, labor, or property, actually received, and applied to the purpose 
for which Buch corporation was created; and all stock dividends, and 
other fictitious increase of capital stock or indebtedness of any such cor- 
poration, shall he void. The capital stock Of no railroad corporation 
shall be increased for anj purpose, excepl upon giving sixty days 1 public 

notice, in such manner as ma\ be provided h\ law. 

§ 14. The exercise of the power and the right of eminent domain 
shall never he so construed or abridged as to prevent the taking, by the 
General Assembly, of the property and franchises of incorporated com- 
panies already organized, ami subjecting them to the public necessity the 

same as of individuals. The right of trial by Jury -hall he held inviolate 

in all trials of claims for compensation, when, in the exercise of the 
said right of eminent domain, any incorporated company -hall he inter- 
ested either for or against the exercise of -.aid right. 

£ la. The General Assembly shall pass law- to correct abuses ami 
prevent unjust discrimination and extortion in the rates of freight and 
passenger tariffs on the different railroads in this state, and enforce 
such laws, by adequate penalties, to the extent, if necessary for that 
purpose, of forfeiture of their property and franchises. 



ARTICLE XII 

MILITIA 

§ 1. The militia of the State of Illinois shall consist of all able- 
bodied male persons, resident in the state, between the ages of eighteen 

and forty-live, except such persons as now are, or hereafter ma\ he, 
exempted hy the laws of the United States, or of this State. 

i; 2. The General Assembly, in providing for the organization, 

equipment, and discipline of tin- militia, shall conform as nearly as prac- 
ticable to the regulations for the government of the armies of the United 
States. 

§ 3. All militia officers shall he commissioned by the governor, and 
may hold their commissions for such time as the General Assembly may 
provide. 

§ 4. The militia shall, in all cases, except treason, felony, or breach 
of the peace, he privileged from arrest during their attendance at musters 
and elections, and in going to and returning from the same. 

§ 5. The military records, banners, and relics of the State shall be 
preserved as an enduring memorial of the patriotism and valor of Illi- 
16 



242 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

nois, and it shall be the duty of the General Assembly to provide by law 
for the safe keeping of the same. 

S li. No person having conscientious scruples against bearing arms, 
shall be compelled to do militia duty in time of peace. Provided, such 
person shall pay an equivalent for such exemption. 

ARTICLE XIII 

WAREHOUSES 

§ 1. All elevators or storehouses where grain or other property is 
stored for a compensation, whether the property stored be kept separate 
or not, arc declared to be public warehouses. 

§ 2. The owner, lessee, or manager of each and every public warehouse 
situated in any town or city of not less than one hundred thousand 
inhabitants, shall make weekly statements under oath, before some offi- 
cer to be designated by law, and keep the same posted in some conspicu- 
ous place in the office of such warehouse, and shall also file a copy for 
public examination in such place as shall be designated by law, which 
statement shall correctly set forth the amount and grade of each and 
every kind of grain in such warehouse, together with such other prop- 
erty as may be stored therein, and what warehouse receipts have been 
issued, and are, at the time of making such statement, outstanding 
therefor ; and shall, on the copy posted in the warehouse, note daily such 
changes as may be made in the quantity and grade of grain in such ware- 
house ; and the different grades of grain shipped in separate lots, shall 
not be mixed with inferior or superior grades, without the consent of the 
owner or consignee thereof. 

§ 3. The owners of property stored in any warehouse, or holder of a 
receipt for the same, shall always be at liberty to examine such property 
stored, and all the books and records of the warehouse, in regard to such 
property. 

§ 4. All railroad companies and other common carriers on railroads 
shall weigh or measure grain at points where it is shipped, and receipt 
for the full amount, and shall be responsible for the delivery of such 
amount to the owner or consignee thereof, at the place of destination. 

8 5. All railroad companies receiving and transporting grain in bulk 
or otherwise shall deliver the same to any consignee thereof, or any 
elevator or public warehouse to which it may be consigned, provided 
such consignee or the elevator or public warehouse can be reached by 
any 1 rack owned, leased, or used, or which can be used, by such railroad 
companies; and all railroad companies shall permit connections to be 
made with their track, so that any such consignee, and any public ware- 
house, coal bank, or coal yard, may be reached by the cars on said 
railroad. 



CONSTITUTION 243 

8 0. It shall be the duty of the General Assembly to pas? all neces- 
sary laws to prevenl the Issue of false and fraudulent warehouse receipts, 
and to give full effect to this article of the Constitution, which shall be 
liberally construed so as to protect producer^ and shippers. And the 
enumeration of the remedies herein named shall not be construed to 
deny to the General Assembly the power to prescribe by law Buch other 
and further remedies as may be found expedient, or to deprive any per- 
son of existing common law remedies. 

§ 7. The General Assembly shall pass laws for the inspection of 

grain, for the protection of producers, shippers, and receivers of grain 

and produce. 

ARTICLE XIV 
AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION 

8 1. Whenever two-thirds of the members of each house of the Gen- 
eral Assembly shall, by a vote entered upon the journals thereof , concur 
that a convention is necessary to revise, alter, or amend the Constitu- 
tion, the question shnll be submitted to the electors at the next general 

election. If a majority voting at the election vote for a convention, the 
General Assembly shall, at the next session, provide for a convention, 
to consist of double the number of members of the Senate, to be elected in 
the same manner, at the same places, and in tin- same districts. The Gen- 
eral Assembly shall, in the act calling the convention, designate the day. 
hour, and place of its meeting, fixing the pay of its members and officers, 
and provide for the payment of the same, together with the expenses 
necessarily incurred by (lie convention in the performance of its duties. 
Before proceeding, the members shall take an oath to support tin- Consti- 
tution of the United States, and of the State of Illinois, and to faithfully 
discbarge their duties as members of the convention. The qualification 
of members shall be the same as that of members of the Senate, and 
vacancies occurring shall be filled in the manner provided for filling 
vacancies in the General Assembly. Said convention shall meet within 
three months after such election, and prepare such revision, alteration. 
or amendments of the Constitution as shall be deemed necessary, which 
shall be submitted to the electors for their ratification or rejection, at 
an election appointed by the convention for that purpose, not less than 
two nor more than six months after the adjournment thereof; and 
unless so submitted and approved, by a majority of the electors voting 
at the election, no such revision, alteration, or amendments shall take 
effect. 

§ 2. Amendments to this Constitution may be proposed in either 
house of the General Assembly, and if the same shall be voted for by 
two-thirds of all the members elected to each of the two houses, such 
proposed amendments, together with the yeas and nays of each house 



244 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

thereon, shall be entered in full on their respective journals, and said 
amendments shall be submitted to the electors of this state for adoption 
or rejection, at the next election of members of the General Assembly, 
in such manner as may be prescribed by law. The proposed amend- 
ments shall be published in full at least three months preceding the 
election, and if a majority of the electors voting at said election shall 
vote for the proposed amendments, they shall become a part of this 
Constitution. But the General Assembly shall have no power to propose 
amendments to more than one article of this Constitution at the same 
session, nor to the same article oftener than once in four years. 



SECTIONS SEPARATELY SUBMITTED 

ILLINOIS CENTRAL RAILROAD 

No contract, obligation, or liability whatever, of the Illinois Central 
Railroad Company, to pay any money into the State treasury, nor any 
lien of the State upon, or right to tax, property of said company, in 
accordance with the provisions or the charter of said company, approved 
February tenth, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and 
fifty-one, shall ever be released, suspended, modified, altered, remitted, or 
in any manner diminished or impaired by legislative or other authority ; 
and all moneys derived from said company, after the payment of the 
State debt, shall be appropriated and set apart for the payment of the 
ordinary expenses of the State government, and for no other purposes 
whatever. 

MINORITY REPRESENTATION 

(See Sections 7 and 8, Article 4) 

MUNICIPAL SUBSCRIPTIONS TO RAILROADS OR PRIVATE CORPORATIONS 

No county, city, town, township, or other municipality shall ever be- 
come subscriber to the capital stock of any railroad or private corpora- 
tion, or make donation to or loan its credit in aid of such corporation. 
Provided, however, that the adoption of this article shall not be construed 
as affecting the right of any such municipality to make such subscrip- 
tions where the same have been authorized, under existing laws, by a 
vote of the people of such municipalities prior to such adoption. 



The Illinois and Michigan Canal shall never be sold or leased until 
the specific proposition for the sale or lease thereof shall first have been 
submitted to a vote of the people of the State, at a general election, and 
have been approved by a majority of all the votes polled at such election. 



CONSTITUTION 245 

The General Assembly shall never loan the credit of th r make 

appropriations from the treasury thereof , in aid of railroads or canals. 
Provided^ that any surplus earnings of any canal may be appropriated 
for Its enlargement or extension. 

convict LABOH 

Hereafter it shall be unlawful for the commissioners of any peniten- 
tiary, or other reformatory Institution In the State of Illinois, to lei by 
contract to any person <>r persons, or corporations, tin- Labor <>f anj 
convict confined within said Institution. 



SCHEDULE 

The so-called "Schedule" <>f a Constitution makes a series <»f pro- 
visions for the change from government under the former Constitution 
to government under the new one. As these provisions are necessarily 
temporary in their character, they are omitted in this place. The Re- 
vised Statutes contain them in full. 



246 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 



ANALYSIS OF THE ILLINOIS CONSTITUTION 

TABLE I 

I. The Preamble (= the enacting clause). 
II. The Land and Its Boundaries (Art. I.). 

III. Suffrage (= definition of the political people) (Art. VII.). 

IV. The Structure and Functions of Government (Arts. III.-VL, 

VIII.-XIIL). 

(1) The General State Government (see Table II.). 

(2) Local Government (see Table III.). 

V. The Bill of Rights (.-= general restrictions on the powers of 

government) (Art. II.). 
VI. Amendments (Art. XIV.). 



TABLE II 

THE GENERAL STATE GOVERNMENT 

I. Distribution of Powers (Art. III.). 
II. The Legislature (Art. IV.). 

(1) Structure (Art, IV, §§1,2, 6-8). 

(2) Qualifications for membership, and disqualifications of 

members (Art. IV., §§ 3-5, 15). 

(3) Privileges of members (Art. IV., §§ 14, 21). 

(4) Powers and duties of the separate houses (Art. IV., §§ 9, 

10, 24). 

(5) Procedure (Art. IV., §§ 11-13). 

(6) Powers and duties in general (Art. IV., §§ 18, 25, 29-32). 

(7) Restrictions (Art. IV., §§ 16-20, 22, 23, 25-28, 33). 



ANALYSIS OF THE ILLINOIS CONSTITUTION 247 

(8) Special fields of legislation : 
(a) Revenue (Art. IX.). 
(jb) Education (Art. VIII.). 

(c) Corporations (Art. XI., also second separate section). 

(d) Warehouses (Art. XIII.). 

(e) Public works (first and third separate sections). 

III. The Executive (Art. V.). 

(1) Structure (Art. V.. §§ 1-4, 24). 

(2) The governor : 

(a) Qualifications (Art. V., § 5). 

(jb) Powers and duties (Art. V., §§ 6-1 1, 10). 

(3) The. lieutenant-governor (Ait. V., §§ 1. 17-19). 

(4) The. executive departments : 

(a) Structure (Art. V.. $§ 1-4. 30). 

(6) Powers and duties (Art. V., gf 20-. 

(5) The State military (Art. V.,% ll ; Art. XII.). 

(6) Privileges of officers (Art. V., § 

(7) Responsibility of officers (Art. V., § 16 ; Art. IV.. §24). 

IV. The Judiciary (Art. VI.). 

(1) Structure of courts (Art. VI., §§ 1-0. 0-11. 18-15, IT, is, 

20-21. 20-20, 32, 33). 

(2) Jurisdiction of courts (Art. VI.. §§8, 12. 16, 18-31). 

(3) Powers and duties of judges (Art VI., §§ 81, 32). 

(4) Privileges of judges (Art. VI., §§ 7. 10. 25, 82). 

(5) Responsibility of judges (Art. VI., §30). 



TABLE III 
LOCAL GOVERNMENT 

I. Counties (Art. X.). 

(1) Organization (Art. X.. £§ 1-3.) 

(2) County seats (Art. X., § 4). 

(3) County government (Art. X.. §§ 5-7). 

(4) County officers (Art. X., §§ 8-13). 
II. Towns (Art. X., § 5 ; Art, IV., § 22). 

III. Municipal Corporations (Art. XI., §§ 1, 2, 4). 

IV. Restrictions on Local Authorities (second separate section). 



248 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 



II. GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS 

THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY 
Arthur St. Clair. 

INDIANA TERRITORY 
William Henry Harrison. 

ILLINOIS TERRITORY 
Ninian Edwards * (1809-1818). 

THE STATE OF ILLINOIS 

Under the Constitution of 1818 the election was held on the 
first Monday in August, and the governor's term began on the first 
Monday in December. Under the Constitution of 1848 the first elec- 
tion was held on the Tuesday next after the first Monday in Novem- 
ber, 1848, and thereafter an election was to be held quadrennially. 
The term of the first governor elected was to begin on the second 
Monday in January, 1849. The term was still four years. The 
Constitution of 1870 made no changes. 

Shadrach Bond 1818-1822 

Edward Coles 1822-1826 

Ninian Edwards 182G-1830 

John Reynolds 1830-1834 

W. L. D. EwiNGf... 1834 

Joseph Duncan 1834-1838 

Thomas Carlin 1838-1842 

Thomas Ford 1842-1846 

* John Boyle, of Kentucky, was appointed, but declined. 

tin 1834 there was a vacancy in the office of lieutenant-governor, and W. L. D. 
Ewing, a senator, was chosen president of the Senate. Governor Reynolds was 
elected to Congress to fill out an unexpired term, and set out for Washington in 
November. Mr. Ewing, accordingly, became acting-governor, an office which he 
held for fifteen days. 



GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS 249 

Augustus C. French* -j J|SlJ|^ 

Joel A. Matteson 185&-1857 

William II. Bissell. 1867-186] 

Richard Yates 1861-1863 

Richard J. Oglesby 1865-1860 

John M. Palmer 1869-1 - 

Richard J. Oglesby l*? ; i 

John L. Beveridge 1873-1877 

o „ r, U877-188 

Shelby M. Cullom # 1881— 1C 

John M. Hamilton 1888-1885 

Richard J. Oglesby 1885-1889 

Joseph W. Fifer 1889-1893 

John P. Altgeld 1893-1897 

John W. Tanner 1897-1901 

* See note at head of list of governors of the SUta . 



250 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 



III. PRESIDENTS OE THE UNITED STATES 

George Washington Virginia 1789-1797 

John Adams Massachusetts 1797-1801 

Thomas Jefferson Virginia 1801-1809 

James Madison Virginia 1809-1817 

James Monroe Virginia 1817-1825 

John Quincy Adams Massachusetts 1825-1829 

Andrew Jackson Tennessee 1829-1837 

Martin Van Buren New York 1837-1841 

William Henry Harrison* Ohio 1841 

John Tyler f Virginia 1841-1845 

James Knox Polk Tennessee 1845-1849 

Zachary Taylor * . .Louisiana 1849-1850 

Millard Fillmore f New York 1850-1853 

Franklin Pierce New Hampshire 1853-1857 

James Buchanan Pennsylvania 1857-1861 

Abraham Lincoln * Illinois 1861-1865 

Andrew Johnson f Tennessee 1865-1869 

Ulysses Simpson Grant Illinois 1869-1877 

Rutherford Birchard Hayes. . . .Ohio 1877-1881 

James Abram Garfield * Ohio 1881 

Chester Allan Arthur \ New York 1881-1885 

Grover Cleveland New York 1885-1889 

Benjamin Harrison Indiana 1889-1893 

Grover Cleveland New York 1893-1897 

William McKinley Ohio 1897 

* Died in office. 

t Succeeded as Vice-President on the death of the President. 



ELECTORAL VOTES 251 



IV. ELECTORAL VOTES CAST BY ILLINOIS 



YEAH BLXOTOB8 
WKKK CHOSEN 

1820. Jambs Monroe * 3 

1824. Andrew Jackson 2 

1821. John QuiNCY ADAMS ♦ 1 

1828. Andrew Jackson * :; 

1832. Andrew Jackson * 5 % 

1836. Martin Van Buren* 6 

1840. Martin Van lit kin 5 

1844. JAMES K. Polk * 9 % 

1848. Lewis Cass 9 

1852. Franklin Pierce* 11 % 

1856. James Buchanan* 11 

18G0. Abraham Lincoln * 11 

1864. Abraham Lincoln *. . . 11 

1868. Ulysses S. Grant * 11 

1872. Ulysses S. Grant * 81 J 

1876. Rutherford B. Hayes* 21 

1880. James A. Garfield * 21 

1884. James G. Blaine 22 % 

1888. Benjamin Harrison * 22 

1892. Groyer Cleyeland * 24 \ 

1896. William McKinley * 24 

* Elected. 

t Elected by the House of Representatives, as there was no choice by the electors. 

X Number of electors increased in accordance with congressional apportionment. 



252 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 



V. THE CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS OF 
ILLINOIS 

{Apportionment of 1893) 

First — The towns of Rich, Bloom, Orland, Bremen, Thornton, 
Calumet, and Worth, in Cook County, and the fourth ward cast of 
the centre line of Wentworth Avenue, the third ward, the thirty-first 
ward, the thirty-second ward, the thirty-third ward, and the thirty- 
fourth ward, in Chicago. 

Second — The towns of Lemont, Palos, Lyons, Proviso, Riverside, 
Cicero, Leyden, Norwood Park, Maine, Elk Grove, Schaumburg, and 
Hanover, in Cook County, and the tenth, twenty-eighth, twenty- 
ninth, and thirtieth wards of the city of Chicago. 

Third— First, second, fifth, sixth, seventh wards, and that part 
of the fourth ward west of the centre line of Wentworth Avenue, all 
in the city of Chicago. 

Fourth — Eighth, ninth, twelfth, and nineteenth wards of the city 
of Chicago. 

Fifth — Eleventh, thirteenth, sixteenth, eighteenth, and seven- 
teenth wards of the city of Chicago. 

Sixth — Twentieth, twenty-first, twenty-second, twenty-third, and 
twenty-fourth wards, also that part of the twenty-fifth ward south 
of the centre line of Diverse y Street and west of the centre line of 
Ilalsted Street, and that part of the twenty-sixth ward south of the 
centre line of Belmont Avenue, all in the city of Chicago. 

Seventh — Fourteenth, fifteenth, and twenty-seventh wards, the 
twenty-fifth ward, except that part south of the centre line of 
Diversey Street and west of the centre line of Ilalsted Street ; 
that part of the twenty-sixth ward north of the centre line of Bel- 
mont Avenue, in the city of Chicago; also the towns of Evanston, 
Niles, New Trier, Xorthfield, Wheeling, Palatine, and Barrington, 
in Cook County, and the county of Lake. 

Eighth— McIIenry, De Kalb, Kane, Du Page, Kendall, and Grundy 
counties. 

Ninth — Boone, Winnebago, Stephenson, Jo Daviess, Carroll, Ogle, 
and Lee. 



CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS 253 

Tenth — Whiteside, Rock Island, Mercer, Henry, Knox, and Stark. 

Eleventh — Bureau, La Salle, Livingston, and Woodford. 

Twelfth, — Will, Kankakee, Iroquois, and Vermilion. 

Thirteenth — Ford, McLean, De Witt, Piatt, Champaign, and 
Douglas. 

Fourteenth — Putnam, Marshall, Peoria, Fulton, Tazewell, and 
Mason. 

Fifteenth — Henderson, Warren, Hancock, McDonough, Adams. 
Brown, and Schuyler. 

Sixteenth — Cass, Morgan, Scott, Pike, Green, Macoupin, Calhoun, 
and Jersey. 

Seventeenth — Menard, Logan, Sangamon, Macon, and Christian. 

Eighteenth — Madison, Montgomery, Bond, Payette, Shelby, and 
Moultrie. 

Nineteenth — Coles, Edgar, Clark, Cumberland, Effingham, Jasper, 
Crawford, Richland, and Lawrence. 

Twentieth — Clay, Jefferson, Wayne. Hamilton, Edwards, Wabash, 
Franklin, White, Gallatin, and Hardin. 

Twentyifirat— Marion, Clinton, Washington, St. Clair, Monroe, 
Randolph, and Perry. 

Twenty -second — Jackson, Union, Alexander, Pulaski, Johnson, 
Williamson, Saline, Pope, and Massac. 



254 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 



VI. THE STATE SENATORIAL DISTRICTS OF 
ILLINOIS 

(Apportionment of 1898) 

First — The first, second, and fifth wards, in the city of Chicago, in 
the county of Cook. 

Second — The tenth ward and that part of the twelfth ward lying 
west of the centre line of Robey Street, in the city of Chicago, in 
the county of Cook. 

Tliird — The thirty-first, thirty-third, and the thirty-fourth wards 
in the city of Chicago, in the county of Cook. 

Fourth — The twenty-eighth and twenty-ninth wards and that part 
of the sixth ward lying west of the south fork of the south branch 
of the Chicago river, in the city of Chicago, and the town of Cicero, 
all in the county of Cook. 

Fifth — The thirtieth and thirty-second wards, in the city of Chi- 
cago, in the county of Cook. 

Sixth — The fifteenth, twenty-sixth, and twenty-seventh wards, in 
the city of Chicago, in the county of Cook. 

Seventh — The towns of Thornton, Bloom, Rich, Bremen, Orland, 
Lemont, Palos, Worth, Lyons, Proviso, Leyden, Elk Grove, 
Schaumburg, Hanover, Barrington, Palatine, Wheeling, Northfield, 
New Trier, and Riverside, and those parts of the towns of Calumet, 
Norwood Park, Maine, Niles, and Evanston lying outside of the city 
of Chicago, all in the county of Cook. 

Eighth— The counties of Lake, McIIenry, and Boone. 

Ninth — The third and fourth wards and that part of the sixth 
ward lying east of the south fork of the south branch of the Chi- 
cago River, in the city of Chicago, in the county of Cook. 

Tenth— The counties of Winnebago and Ogle. 

Eleventh — The thirteeth and fourteenth wards, in the city of Chi- 
cago, in the county of Cook. 

Twelfth— The counties of Stephenson, Jo Daviess, and Carroll. 

Thirteenth — The seventh and eighth wards, in the city of Chicago, 
in the county of Cook. 



STATE SENATORIAL DISTRICTS 265 

Fourteenth — The county of Kane. 

Fifteenth — The ninth ward and that part of the eleventh ward 
lying south of the centre line of Lake street, and west of the centre 
lines of Sheldon Street and Loomia Street, and that pari of the 
twelfth ward lying east of the centre line of Robey Street, in the 
city of Chicago, in the county of Cook. 

Sixteenth — The counties of Kankakee and Iroqui 

Seventeenth — The sixteenth and seventeenth wards, and that pari 
of the eleventh ward lying north <»(' the centre line of Lake Street, in 
the city of Chicago, in the county of Cook. 

Eighteenth — The counties of Ford, Livingston, ami Woodford. 

Nineteenth — The eighteenth and nineteenth wards and that pari 
of the eleventh ward lying south of the centre Line of Lake Street 
and east of the centre line of Sheldon Street and Loomis Street, in 
the city of Chicago, in the coiintv of Cook. 

Twentieth — The counties of Knox, Marshall, Putnam, and 
Stark. 

Twenty-first — The twenty-first, twenty-second, and twenty-fifth 
wards in the city of Chicago, in the county of Cook. 

Twenty-second — The counties of McLean and Tazewell. 

Twenty-third — The twentieth, twenty-third, ami twenty-fourth 
wards, in the city of Chicago, in the county of Cook. 

Twenty-fourth — The county of Peoria. 

Twenty -fifth — The counties of Will and Du Page. 

Twenty-sixth — The counties of McDonough, Warren, and Fulton. 

Twenty-seventh— -The county of La Salle. 

Twenty-eighth — The counties of Hancock. Henderson, and Mercer. 

Twenty-ninth — The counties of De Kail). Kendall, and Grundy. 

Thirtieth — The counties of Champaign. Piatt, and Moultrie. 

Thirty-first — The counties of Bureau, Whiteside, and Lee. 

Thirty-second— The counties of Mason. Menard. Cass, Brown, and 
Schuyler. 

Thirty -third— The counties of Rock Island and Henry. 

Thirty-fourth — The counties of Morgan, Scott, and Pike. 

Thirty-fifth — The counties of Vermilion and Edgar. 

Thirty-sixth — The counties of Green, Macoupin, Jersey, and Cal- 
houn. 

Tli irty -seventh — The county of Adams. 

Thirty-eighth — The counties of Madison and Bond. 

Thirty-ninth — The county of Sangamon. 

Fortieth — The counties of Douglas, Coles, and Clark. 



256 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 

Forty-first — The counties of Macon, De Witt, and Logan. 

Forty-second — The counties of Fayette, Effingham, Clinton, and 
Marion. 

Forty-third — The counties of Christian, Montgomery, and Shelby. 

Forty -fourth — The counties of Clay, Wayne, Edwards, Wabash, 
and Lawrence. 

Forty-fifth — The counties of Jasper, Crawford, Cumberland, and 
Richland. 

Forty-sixth — The counties of Jefferson, Hamilton, and White. 

Forty-seventh — The counties of Washington, Perry, Franklin, and 
Williamson. 

Forty-eighth — The counties of Monroe, Randolph, and Jackson. 

Forty-ninth — The county of St. Clair. 

Fiftieth — The counties of Union, Alexander, Pulaski, and Massac. 

Fifty-first — The counties of Johnson, Pope, Hardin, Gallatin, and 
Saline. 



ELECTION DISTRICTS OF SUPREME COURT 257 



VII. THE ELECTION DISTRICTS OF THE 
SUPKBME COURT OF ILLINOIS 

First District — Counties of St. Clair, Clinton. Washington, Jef- 
ferson, Wayne, Edwards, Wabash, White, Hamilton. Franklin, 
Perry, Randolph, Monroe, Jackson. Williamson, Saline, Gallatin, 
Hardin, Pope, Union, Johnson, Alexander, Pulaski, and MaooiC. 

Second District — Counties of Madison, Bond, Marion, Clay, 
Richland, Lawrence, Crawford, Jasper, Effingham, Payette, Mont- 
gomery, Macoupin, Shelby, Cumberland, Clark, Green, Jersey, Cal- 
houn, and Christian. 

Third District — The counties of Sangamon. Macon, Logan, 
De Witt, Piatt, Douglas, Champaign, Vermilion, McLean, Living- 
ston, Ford, Iroquois, Coles, Edgar, Moultrie, and TasewelL 

Fourth District — The counties of Fulton. McDonongh, Hancock. 
Schuyler, Brown, Adams, Pike, Mason. Menard, Morgan. Cass, and 
Scott. 

Fifth District — Counties of Knox, Warren. Henderson, Mercer, 
Henry, Stark, Peoria, Marshall, Putnam, Bureau, La Salle, Grundy, 
and Woodford. 

Si.rth District— Counties of Whiteside. Carroll. Jo Daviess, 
Stephenson, Winnebago, Boone, Mellenry, Kane, Kendall, Dc Kalb, 
Lee, Ogle, and Rock Island. 

Seventh District — Counties of Lake, Cook, Will, Kankakee, and 
Du Page. 

17 



258 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 



VIII. THE ILLINOIS JUDICIAL CIRCUITS 



(Act of 1897) 

First Circuit — The counties of Alexander, Pulaski, Massac, Pope, 
Johnson, Union, Jackson, Williamson, and Saline. 

Second Circuit — The counties of Hardin, Gallatin, White, Hamil- 
ton, Franklin, Wabash, Edwards, Wayne, Jefferson, Richland, 
Lawrence, and Crawford. 

Third Circuit — The counties of Randolph, Monroe, St. Clair, 
Madison, Bond, Washington, and Perry. 

Fourth Circuit — The counties of Clinton, Marion, Clay, Fayette. 
Effingham, Jasper, Montgomery, Shelby, and Christian. 

Fifth Circuit — The counties of Vermilion, Edgar, Clark, Cumber- 
land, and Coles. 

Sixth Circuit — The counties of Champaign, Douglas, Moultrie, 
Macon, De Witt, and Piatt. 

Seventh Circuit — The counties of Sangamon, Macoupin, Morgan, 
Scott, Greene, and Jersey. 

Eighth Circuit — The counties of Adams, Schuyler, Mason, Cass, 
Brown, Pike, Calhoun, and Menard. 

Ninth Circuit — The counties of Knox, Warren, Henderson, Han- 
cock, McDonough, and Fulton. 

Tenth Circuit — The counties of Peoria, Marshall, Putnam, Stark, 
and Tazewell. 

Eleventh Circuit — The counties of McLean, Livingston, Logan, 
Ford, and Woodford. 

Twelfth Circuit — The counties of Will, Kankakee, and Iroquois. 

Thirteenth Circuit — The counties of Bureau, La Salle, and Grundy. 

Fourteenth Circuit — The counties of Rock Island, Mercer, White- 
side, and Henry. 

Fifteenth Circuit — The counties of Jo Davioss, Stephenson, 
Carroll, Ogle, and Lee. 

Sixteenth Circuit — The counties of Kane, Du Page, De Kalb, and 
Kendall. 

Seventeenth Circuit— The, counties of Winnebago, Boone, Mc- 
Henry, and Lake. 

There is also a circuit in Cook County. 



AREA AND POPULATION 



25'J 



IX. AREA AND POPULATION OF ILLINOIS AND 
CHICAGO 



ILLINOIS 
Area. 56,660 sq. m. 

POPULATION 

1810 12,282 

1820 55,162 

1830 157,445 

1840 476,183 

1850 851.470 

1860 1,711,951 

1870 2,530,891 

1880 3,077,871 

1890 3,826,351 



CHICAGO 

POPULATION 

1837 4.17(»... 

1S40 4,479 

1850 20,963 

1860 109,206 

1870 806,605 

1880 491,516 

1890 1,099,850. 



ART. A 

2.55 sq. in. 



180.20 sq. in. 



260 THE GOVERNMENT OF ILLINOIS 



X. KEFEEENCES AND ABBEEVIATIONS 

REFERENCES 

1. The government of Illinois is a government of law. In order 
to know what it is, therefore, it is necessary to know the laws which 
create it and in accordance with which it exists. These laws are : (1) 
the Constitution of the United States ; (2) the statutes enacted by 
the Congress of the United States ; (3) treaties made by the United 
States with foreign nations or with the Indian tribes ; (4) the Con- 
stitution of Illinois ; (5) the statutes enacted by the Illinois Legisla- 
ture ; (6) the ordinances made by City Councils, or by other bodies 
duly authorized by the Legislature. 

2. Every essential fact concerning the government of the State is 
to be found in one or more of these sources. To these reference 
should always be made in case of doubt. 

3. Various departments of government publish "manuals," or 
some similar documents, usually each year, in which will be found 
the names of public officers and other facts of interest. 

4. The Constitution of the United States* and the Constitution 
of Illinois are in the Appendixes to this book. 

5. The Statutes of Congress are gathered into a volume known as 
the "Revised Statutes of the United States," with several smaller 
volumes called "Supplements " and containing laws made later than 
the date of the Revised Statutes. 

" The Statutes at Large" are a collection, in many volumes, of all 
the laws which Congress has ever made, arranged by years. 

6. The "Revised Statutes of Illinois" are also collected into a 
single volume — one edition having several volumes. 

The Illinois " Session Laws " are the enactments of each Legisla- 
ture, arranged by years. 

7. Cities usually publish collections of their laws and ordinances — 
as is also the case with other subordinate legislative authorities. 

8. The treaties of the United States are published by the United 
States Government in a volume called " Treaties and Conventions of 

* Part I., p. 104. 



REFERENCES AND ABBREVIATIONS 261 

the United States." Those made later than the publication of this 
volume may be found in other public documents, which may usually 
be obtained from a member of Congress. 



ABBREVIATIONS 

The following abbreviations are used in this book : 

U. S. Const." = Constitution of the United States. 

111. Const." or simply "Const." = Constitution of Illinois. Cita- 
tions to the Illinois Constitution if not in foot-notes are some' 
times made by noting merely the article and sect inn (e. g„ Art. 
X., § 1). 

U. S. Rev. Stat." = Revised Statutes of tin- United St.-, 

111. Rev. Stat." or simply " ReT. Stat."' = Illinois Revised Stat utes, 

L. & 0." = Laws and Ordinances of Chicago. 

Donaldson " = Donaldson's "The Public Domain." 



INDEX 



PAGE 

Adjournment of legislature *i7. 78 

Amendment of constitution 52 :> I 

Appellate courts 119, 190 

Appointments 86, 76, 77, 105-197 

Apportionment 57 

Articles of Confederation 7 

Asylums 97, 96 

Assault and battery 134 

Assessment 161 

Assessments, Bpecial 159 

Assessors 152 

Assessor, town 189, 188 

Attorney, 

City 141, 143 

prosecuting l 13 

Attorney-General s ; 

Auditor, State 86 

Auditors, town 186 

Australian ballot 50, 51 

Bail 177 

Ballot 50,51 

Banks 190 

Base line 89, 84, 87 

Bicameral legislature 56 

Bill of Rights 171-198 

Board 

of Dental Examiners 101 

of Education 169 

of Health, State 100 

of Pharmacy 101 

Boards, State 100-108 

Boundaries of Illinois 19, 20, 25, 45 

Cahokia 10, 13, 17 

Capitals of Illinois 23 

Capitol, State 110 

Cession of West to United States.. . . 11 

Charities, State 9'.). 100 

Chicago 23. 134. 141, 168 

schools 160 

Circuit courts 118 

Cities 137-140 

Civil rights 170 

Service Commission 148 

service reform 148 

Clerk, city 141 

Clerks of courts 126, 129 

Collector, 

city 142 

town 132, 133 

Collectors, United States 205. 906 

Common Council 138, 139 



Commissioner 

of buildings 143 

of health Ill 

of public works 1 £2 

Commission of < Claims ill 

Commitment 17* 

Common law 117 

Comptroller 149 

< longressional district- 

Constables 185, 186 

Constitutions of Illinois 29, 18,56 

Constitution of the United States 8 

Convention, constitutional.. 83, 84 

Cook County 84, 119, 195, 196, 184 

Coroner ..." 196, 198 

Corporations 188 190 

( 'on nt ies 28, 99, 1 28, 1 81 

County commissioners 195, 185, 13<; 

board 194,185, 186 

clerk 196, 197 

Counsel, corporation 148 

Courts of la w 117-192 

County court 130 

surveyor 196, 199 

treasurer 196, 13! 

Court 182 

Courts, United states 201-904 

Crimes, infamous 49 

Criminal laws 115 

Departments, administrative 

Debt, public 154, 164, 184 

Directors, school 158 

Domicile 48 

Drainage 145, 146 

Due process Of law 170, 175 

Duties 

of administrative officers 85,86 

of governor 80 

of legislature 70 

Education 155-165 

compulsory 156 

Elections 58, 192, 197 

city 138 

Election districts 41 

Elections, presidential 198-201 

Eminent domain 185 

Enabling Act for Illinois 20 

English "colon ies 4-7 

Equalization of taxes 112 

Executive department 74 

Ex post facto law . . 181 



264 



INDEX 



PAGE 

Exemptions from tax 153 

Expulsion from legislature 03 

Fanners 1 Institute, Illinois 105 

Federal government 166 

Felony 134 

Fire marshal 144 

Fort Chartres 27 

Dearborn 23, 24 

Freedom 

of religion 173 

of speech 114 

Game wardens 107 

Gerrymander 57, 198 

Government 54, 55 

of English colonies 3 

Governor 75 

Grand jury 178, 179 

Habeas corpus 180 

Highway commissioner 133 

Horticultural Society, State 105 

Illinois, 

a State 20 

and Michigan Canal 109 

Central Railroad 109 

Territory 18 

under France 12 

under Great Britain 13 

under Virginia 13 

Impeachment 65 

Indiana, 

boundaries 18 

Territory 17 

Indians in Illinois 26 

Indictment 178 

Infamous crime 49, 134 

Inspection, city 145 

Insurance companies. . , 190 

Judicial districts 40, 41 

Jury.... 134 

Justice of the peace 134, 136 

Kaskaskia. . . .10, 13, 16, 19, 21, 22, 23, 27 

Land claims of States 9, 10 

Legislation, method of 71 

Legislature 56-72 

Libraries, state 95 

Lientenant-( lovernor 82 

Libel 174 

Lotteries 191 

Mandamus. . 122 

Mayor 140 

Menard, Pierre 83 

Minority representation 59 

Misdemeanor 134 

National Guard 89 

Naval militia 90 

Normal schools 93 

Northwest Territory 14 



PAGE 

Oath 60 

Oath of governor 81 

Obligations 114 

Ordinance of 17'87 14, 91 

Organization of legislature 83 

Pardons, State Board of 113 

Parks 145 

Parole system 1(7 

Penalties 181 

Petition 175 

Physician, city 1 44 

Poll tax 150 

Population of Illinois 19 

Port of entry 205 

Post-offices 204 

Powers of legislature 69 

Preamble 43 

President, village - 147 

Principal meridian 32, 34, 36 

Privileges 60 

Probate courts 131 

Prohibitions on States 1 67-171 

Property, 

real and personal 151 

tax 151 

Proportional representation 58 

Public works, city 142 

Qualifications, legislative 59 

Quorum 67 

Railroads 190 

Recorder of deeds 126, 129 

Reformatory 98 

Removal from office 78 

Representatives 195 

Revenue, public 150-154 

Review, Board of 153 

Revised Statutes, Illinois 116 

Rights 114 

Salary..6t, 76, 82, 85, 118, 121, 130, 150, 203 
School 

districts 42 

funds 161-163 

law 92 

Secretary of State 86 

Sections 31, 33 

Senate 56, 58, 59, 65 

Senatorial districts 40 

Senators, United States 194 

Settlement of North America 3, 4 

Sheriff 126, 127 

Slavery 169 

Springfield 23 

StalT. 89 

State 46 

State's attorney 126, 128 

St. Clair County 16 

Suffrage 47-52, 171 

Superintendent, 

county 126, 128 

of police 144 

State 86 

Superintendents, city 142 



INDEX 



265 



PAGE 

Supervisors 125, 132, 133 

Supreme Court 120-122 

Tax 150,161,li;.'!. 188 

Teachers loi 

Territorial government, second grade 17 

Towns 29, 80, 81, 121, 131, 186, 186 

Town meeting 18S 

Torrene Bystem 129, 180 

Town clerk 182, 188 

Townships. .80, 31, 32, 33, 3 J, 37, 12 J, 166 
Treasurer, 

city 140, 111, 142 

State h; 



PAGE 

Trustees, 

school 150, 157 

village 147 

Onivereity, state M 

Vacancy in office 82, 87 

Vandalla 28 

Veto 79 

Villages 137, 146-148 

Voting, 

See Suffrage. 

machine 51 

Warrant 170 



MAY 23 1900 



